Quick Search: Hepatitis B | Hepatitis C | Interferons
Acute hepatitis C: The short time frame (usually about 6 months) after initial infection.
Acute hepatitis B: The short time frame (usually about 6 months) after initial infection.
ALT: Alanine aminotransferase. Elevated levels of ALT may indicate damage or inflammation to the liver but do not correlate well with liver damage in hepatitis C.
Antibodies: Proteins made by the immune system that can bind to foreign molecules invading the body and, in doing so, help fight off infection.
Antiviral drug: A drug that fights a virus.
Ascites: Accumulation of fluid in the abdomen, often seen in patients with cirrhosis.
Asymptomatic: Without symptoms or signs of illness.
Chronic hepatitis B: Virus is still present in the blood (and liver) 6 months after infection.
Cirrhosis: An advanced stage of liver disease in which liver tissue is replaced by scar tissue and the liver cells cannot work properly. This may cause complications.
Combination therapy: When two or more drugs are used together to treat an illness (eg, pegylated interferon and ribavirin for hepatitis C).
Cryoglobulinaemia: Blood thickening due to the presence of abnormal proteins.
Decompensated liver disease: Liver disease in which the liver is damaged, resulting in reduced functionality of the liver. It is
accompanied by fluid build-up in the abdomen.
Dialysis: A process used in patients with kidney failure to remove waste products or toxic substances from the blood.
Encephalopathy: An inflammation of the brain, the results of which range from mild symptoms to coma and brain dysfunction.
Endemic: An infection that is prevalent in a community or region.
End-stage renal disease (ESRD): An advanced stage of kidney disease where the kidney is working at 10 per cent capacity or less, and the patient requires regular dialysis to survive.
Excoriations: Self-inflicted blisters resulting from itching.
Extrahepatic: Originating/occurring within a part of the body other than the liver.
Fibrosis: Scarring of the liver tissue.
Flaviviridae: A family of viruses causing illnesses such as yellow fever and dengue (infectious tropical diseases), and encephalitis (inflammation of the brain). The hepatitis C virus is also a member of this family of viruses.
Genotype: Strains of hepatitis C virus that are similar enough to be considered the same type of virus but have differences in their RNA. Different HCV genotypes respond differently to treatment with interferon alfa.
Glomerulonephritis: Inflammation of the glomeruli in the kidney.
HBV DNA: Hepatitis B virus DNA. The genetic material found inside the hepatitis B virus. Presence of HBV DNA is one marker of current hepatitis B infection.
HCV RNA: Hepatitis C virus RNA. The genetic material found inside the hepatitis C virus. Presence of HCV RNA is a marker of current hepatitis C infection.
Hepadnavirus: family of viruses which cause liver infections to which HBV belongs.
Hepatic steatosis: Fatty liver.
Hepatitis A: Infection of the liver caused by an RNA virus and transmitted by ingestion of infected food and water. Hepatitis A has a shorter incubation and generally milder symptoms than hepatitis B.
Hepatitis B: Infection of the liver caused by a DNA virus, which is transmitted by contaminated blood or blood derivatives in transfusions, by sexual contact with an infected person, or by the use of contaminated needles and instruments. It has a long incubation and symptoms that may become severe or chronic, causing serious damage to the liver.
Hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAg): Protein enclosing the partially double-stranded DNA genome and DNA polymerase and forming the core particle at the centre of the virion.
Hepatitis B envelope antigen (HBeAg): This antigen is associated with the viral nucleocapsid. Its presence in serum indicates that the virus is replicating and that the individual is potentially infectious.
Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg): A surface particle from the hepatitis B virus. Its presence in serum defines hepatitis B infection; it is the first antigen to be detected.
Hepatocellular carcinoma: Cancer of the liver. A malignant tumour growing in the liver, in most cases as a complication of cirrhosis.
High viral load: A high concentration of virus in the blood.
HIV: Human immunodeficiency virus. The virus that causes AIDS.
Immune system: Our body’s natural defence system, involving antibodies and white blood cells called lymphocytes and neutrophils.
Incidence: The rate at which something happens (usually expressed on a yearly basis), eg, the rate at which people become infected with hepatitis C.
Interferon: A substance made by the body, or synthesised in a laboratory, that helps stop viruses from reproducing and boosts the immune system.
Jaundice: A yellowing of the skin caused by an excess of yellow-orange bile pigment in the blood.
Liver: An organ located in the right upper abdomen whose functions include removing toxins, making proteins and clotting factors, clearing bacteria and processing nutrients.
Liver biopsy: A small sample of liver is removed and then assessed under a microscope.
Liver failure: A condition where the liver no longer works properly. Symptoms of liver failure include fatigue, jaundice, swelling of the legs and belly, bleeding from the stomach, mouth and bowel, confusion and decreased levels of consciousness.
Myalgia: Pain in the muscles.
Non-responders: Patients who do not experience an improvement in their disease from treatment.
Pegylated interferon: Pegylation is a process that links a neutral substance called polyethylene glycol (PEG) to interferon to improve the way the medical product is used, primarily by prolonging the time that it is active against the virus.
Perinatal transmission: Transmission of a disease-causing agent (a pathogen) from mother to baby during the perinatal period, the period immediately before and after birth.
Porphyria cutanea tarda: Enzyme deficiency leading to skin blistering.
Prevalence: The number of people infected with a virus within a community or region at a given time. Usually expressed as a
percentage of the population.
Proteins: Large molecules made up of amino acids linked together.
Relapse: The return of the hepatitis C virus in a patient who had initially cleared it from his/her system.
Ribavirin: An orally administered antiviral drug that, when used in combination with interferon, can suppress the hepatitis C virus and reduce liver damage.
RNA: Ribonucleic acid, a genetic material similar to DNA.
Serum: The clear, slightly yellow fluid that separates from blood when it clots.
Sicca syndrome: Dryness of the eyes and mouth.
Sustained viral response (SVR): No detectable virus in the blood 6 months after the end of treatment. An important indicator of the efficacy of medication, since it is widely taken to represent a cure. Patients achieving SVR very rarely show subsequent signs of infection.
Varices: Swollen, twisted veins in the intestinal wall.
Vasculitis: Inflammation of blood vessels.
Viral load: The number of HCV particles in the blood.
Virus: A microscopic particle that invades other living things in order to survive and reproduce, often causing illness in its host.