Hepatitis B

What is Hepatitis B?

Hepatitis B (or Hep B) is an infectious virus that can cause serious disease of the liver. The liver is part of the body's digestive system and performs lots of functions essential to health like digesting fats and filtering toxins. When your liver isn't working properly you can feel very sick.

How do you get it?

Hep B can be transferred from one person to another through body fluids like blood, semen, vaginal fluid and saliva. It can be passed on through:

• Unprotected oral, anal or vaginal sex (sex without a condom) with a person who has Hep B.
• Sharing toothbrushes, razors, needles or injecting equipment with a person who has Hep B.
• Getting a tattoo painted with ink from an inkpot that has been used to tattoo someone else.  (You should only get tatts and piercings done at professional parlours).
• Contact sports where there are cuts and grazes.

Any other ways you can get it?

Yes, a pregnant woman can pass on Hep B to her baby before it is born.

Also, some people now living in Australia who grew up in another country got Hep B from vaccinations in childhood where one needle was used for a lot of people.

What are the symptoms?

About half the number of people infected with Hep B don't have any symptoms. They can pass it on without ever knowing that they are infected. For the other 50%, some of the symptoms of Hep B are:

• fever and extreme tiredness
• pain in your stomach
• your urine or poop can be a strange colour
• your skin can look yellow
• you might not feel very hungry
• you might feel like throwing up

A very small percentage of people can get very sick, very suddenly. They can feel very tired; have yellow skin and a swollen stomach. They need to be treated by a doctor immediately.

What if I'm Pregnant? Will it affect the baby?

Hep B can be passed on to babies, usually during childbirth, and the virus can also cause problems for the mother during pregnancy, depending on how sick she is. It's important to be tested for Hep B when you are pregnant so that the doctor can work out how to best look after you and the baby.

How can I prevent it?

You can protect yourself against Hep B by getting vaccinated. The vaccine is given by needle over a few months. Using condoms or dams will decrease the risk of catching Hep B from sex. Check out the Condoms factsheet for tips on how to use condoms correctly. Also, be blood aware. When playing sports, wash blood off yourself, and if someone else has blood on them, wear gloves to help them or ask them to wash the blood off themselves.

What happens in a Hepatitis B test?

The test for Hep B is a blood test. This means the doctor or nurse will take a sample of your blood and examine it for the virus. If you have Hep B, the doctor or nurse will give you another blood test to see if you are a carrier and can pass the infection on to other people. To find out where you can go for a sexual health check, call FPA Healthline on 1300 65 88 86 to talk to a reproductive and sexual health nurse. Talking to the nurse is confidential and anonymous.

How is it treated?

There is no medical treatment for Hep B, but some people's systems get rid of the infection on their own - 95% of people with the infection get completely well. You might need to be careful about what you eat, and stop drinking alcohol. Your doctor can give you advice about this. About 5% of people can't get rid of the virus and go on to develop serious health problems. These people are called 'carriers' and might still be able to pass the infection on to other people.

There is a vaccine that can reduce the likelihood of becoming infected if started within 2 weeks of exposure to Hep B. If you have done risky things you can talk to a sexual health clinic about whether you can get this vaccine.

If I go to a clinic will they tell my parents?

According to the law you can ask for and agree to medical care for yourself once you are 16 years old. At the sexual health clinic, discussion with you and the information you give the staff is completely confidential. It cannot be shared with your parents or people you know, unless the law requires staff to do so. An example of this would be if health staff thought you were at risk of serious harm. In this case the clinic is required to report this to DOCS (Department of Community Services). Another example might be if your files were required in a Court case.  If you are between 14 and 16 you may still be able to agree to your own medical care, but this can vary in individual cases.

Doctors are also required to report cases of Hep B to the Government so they can monitor the disease in Australia. Your identifying details are not used here, though - just a number. They don't need to know who you are, but want to keep track of how many people are getting the infection.

For more information on STIs and having a sexual health check-up, call FP NSW Healthline on 1300 65 88 86, or visit http://www.fpnsw.org.au/.