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Tens of thousands of people are newly infected with viral hepatitis every year in the United States. It is a serious public health threat that kills thousands of Americans annually and is a leading cause of liver cancer. Hepatitis A and hepatitis B are vaccine-preventable, and hepatitis C can be cured.
The United States has the opportunity and the responsibility to eliminate viral hepatitis as a public health threat. Working
with providers and their patients, we can collectively achieve this goal.
May is designated as Hepatitis Awareness Month in the United States, providing 31 days to raise awareness of viral hepatitis in the United States. During May, agencies and offices across the federal government as well as state and local partners, work to raise awareness of the importance of vaccination for hepatitis A and hepatitis B, testing for hepatitis B and hepatitis C, the availability of adequate care and curative treatment, and the severe health consequences resulting from undiagnosed and untreated viral hepatitis.
The month-long observance includes Hepatitis Testing Day on May 19. These observances are important opportunities to raise widespread awareness of viral hepatitis and its impact in the U.S. and expand our coordinated national efforts to improve the health of the estimated 862,000 people living with hepatitis B and 2.4 million people living with hepatitis C.
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver often caused by a virus. In the United States, the most common types of viral hepatitis
are hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C. While each can produce similar symptoms, each hepatitis virus affects the liver differently, has different routes of transmission and infection, and typically affects different populations.
Fortunately, effective vaccines are available to help prevent hepatitis A and hepatitis B, and there is treatment for hepatitis B. Although no vaccine is available for hepatitis C, treatment can cure infection from the virus. Learn more about the different viral hepatitis types.
Hepatitis A is a vaccine-preventable liver infection caused by the hepatitis A virus (HAV). HAV is found in the stool and blood of people who are infected. Hepatitis A is very contagious. It is spread when someone unknowingly ingests the virus — even in microscopic amounts — through close personal contact with an infected person or through eating contaminated food or drink.
- Symptoms of hepatitis A can last up to 2 months and include fatigue, nausea, stomach pain, and jaundice. Most people with hepatitis A do not have long-lasting illness.
- Prevention - The best way to
prevent hepatitis A is to get vaccinated.
Hepatitis B is a vaccine-preventable liver infection caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV). Hepatitis B is spread when blood, semen, or other body fluids from a person infected with the virus enter the body of someone who is not infected. This can happen through sexual
contact, sharing needles, syringes, or other drug-injection equipment, or during pregnancy or delivery.
- Symptoms - Not all people newly infected with HBV have symptoms, but for those that do, symptoms can include fatigue, poor appetite, stomach pain, nausea, and jaundice. For many people, hepatitis B is a short-term illness. For others, it can become a long-term, chronic infection that can lead to serious, even life-threatening, health issues like liver disease or liver cancer. Age plays a role in whether hepatitis B will become chronic. The younger a person is when infected with the hepatitis B virus, the greater the chance of chronic
infection.
- Prevention - The best way to prevent hepatitis B is to get vaccinated.
- CDC recommends screening all adults aged 18 years and older for hepatitis B at least once in their lifetime using a triple panel test.
- Screen pregnant people for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) during each pregnancy regardless of vaccination status and history of testing.
- Expand periodic risk-based testing to include people incarcerated, people with a history of
sexually transmitted infections or multiple sex partners, and people with hepatitis C virus infection.
- To ensure increased access to testing, anyone requesting HBV testing should receive it regardless of risk disclosure. Many people might be reluctant to disclose stigmatizing risks.
Hepatitis C is a liver infection caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Hepatitis C is spread through contact with blood from an infected person. Today, most people become infected with the hepatitis C virus by sharing needles or other equipment used to prepare and inject drugs. Getting tested for hepatitis C is important, because treatments can cure most people with hepatitis C in 8 to 12 weeks.
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- Symptoms - For some people, hepatitis C is a short-term illness, but for more than half of people who become infected with the hepatitis C virus, it becomes a long-term, chronic infection. People with chronic hepatitis C can often have no symptoms and don’t feel sick. When symptoms appear, they usually are a sign of advanced liver disease.
- Prevention - There is no
vaccine for hepatitis C. The best way to prevent hepatitis C is by avoiding behaviors that can spread the disease, especially injecting drugs. Getting tested for hepatitis C is important because treatments can cure most people with hepatitis C in 8 to 12 weeks.
- Are 18 years of age and older (get tested at least once in your lifetime)
- Are pregnant (get tested during each pregnancy)
- Currently inject drugs (get tested regularly)
Know More Hepatitis is an
educational campaign encouraging all adults to get tested for hepatitis C. The goal of the campaign is to ultimately reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with hepatitis C by increasing testing so those who are infected can get linked to life-saving care and treatment. Supporting fact sheets, posters, infographics, buttons & badges, live-read radio scripts, templates, and other images can all be found under campaign materials.
Assess your risk and take action - Use these easy online tools to locate a nearby provider of hepatitis A or hepatitis B vaccination or hepatitis B or hepatitis C testing. Share these tools with friends, family, colleagues, members, clients, constituents, etc.
Learn more about The Viral Hepatitis National Strategic Plan: A Roadmap to Elimination 2021-2025 - PDF that provides a framework to control the viral hepatitis epidemics and eliminate viral hepatitis as a public health threat in the United
States by 2030.
2024 Viral Hepatitis National Progress Report | 2022 Viral Hepatitis Surveillance Report
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Training Modules: HIV/HCV Viral Clearance Cascade Training Series
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The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Special Projects of National Significance (SPNS) HIV/HCV Data-to-Care Initiative has released a series of four mini-modules covering the steps required to use available public health datasets to create and act upon HIV and hepatitis C (HCV) viral clearance cascades. These tools help identify untreated coinfected persons and bring them into care to achieve an HCV cure. Each module includes three to four short videos detailing a step in the process. Click here to learn more.
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| HBV and HDV Management Recommendations
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Get guideline-based patient-specific HBV and HDV management recommendations right at your fingertips. Access the Interactive Decision Support Tool for expert recommendations and feedback on your patient cases. Fully updated to include the EASL Clinical Practice Guidelines on HDV.
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Clinical Care Options: HBV Treatment During Pregnancy
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Watch this 15-minute video to learn expert strategies to prevent HBV mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) among infants born to HBsAg-positive mothers, including risk factors for MTCT, comparison of antiviral therapies, and prevention strategies for the infant.
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HIV/STI/TB/Viral Hepatitis Lunch and Learn
Introduction to Trauma Informed Health Care: What is trauma, and its importance in health care? After this session, attendees will be able to: - Recognize the relationship between trauma/lived experiences and health outcomes;
- Understand how to navigate a patient/client encounter with respect to previous trauma;
- Adopt one new technique to incorporate the principles of trauma-informed care into your practice;
Presenter: Katelyn Macdonald, MPAS, PA-C
Wednesday, May 22 | 12:00 pm CT/11:00 am MT Register here.
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The Mountain West AIDS Education and Training Center (MWAETC) program is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $3,333,289 with 0% financed with non-governmental sources. The content in this presentation are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government.
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