Aa
at least 35 yrs since possible exposure?
Hi
I was just told that I need to be tested for Hep C. I do have some off "liver function" tests, but the values are just a tiny bit outside range (for example, AST of 34 with a reference range of 8 to 30, ALT of 45 with a reference range of 7 to 40, alkaline phosphatase of 151 with a RR of 50 to 136)
All along my doc has been saying it looks like fatty liver disease (I am overweight)
Anyway she tells me that new guidelines suggest all ppl in my age group get tested. (I'm 58)
The thing is, IF I was exposed to Hep C, it would have been a very long time ago! I have not used any drugs of any kind in over 35 yrs. I did inject stuff and did snort stuff a very very few times between age 18 to 20, I have had STDs (can you get Hep C that way?) No blood transfusions, worked as a nurse's aid but didn't come into contact with blood that I can recall.
long story shortened a tiny bit LOL wouldn't I have had *something* show up before now? my slightly elevated liver test values are recent, just in the last two year. An ultrasound of my liver didn't show anything to be concerned about.
Does anyone actually go this long without having some idea that they might have been infected?
I was just told that I need to be tested for Hep C. I do have some off "liver function" tests, but the values are just a tiny bit outside range (for example, AST of 34 with a reference range of 8 to 30, ALT of 45 with a reference range of 7 to 40, alkaline phosphatase of 151 with a RR of 50 to 136)
All along my doc has been saying it looks like fatty liver disease (I am overweight)
Anyway she tells me that new guidelines suggest all ppl in my age group get tested. (I'm 58)
The thing is, IF I was exposed to Hep C, it would have been a very long time ago! I have not used any drugs of any kind in over 35 yrs. I did inject stuff and did snort stuff a very very few times between age 18 to 20, I have had STDs (can you get Hep C that way?) No blood transfusions, worked as a nurse's aid but didn't come into contact with blood that I can recall.
long story shortened a tiny bit LOL wouldn't I have had *something* show up before now? my slightly elevated liver test values are recent, just in the last two year. An ultrasound of my liver didn't show anything to be concerned about.
Does anyone actually go this long without having some idea that they might have been infected?
I have had the virus 30 years and I had no symptoms at all that was my last exposure of intravenous drug use.
hehe
Rattybutt
not your condition. your made up name
happy to hear you are getting tested
Rattybutt
not your condition. your made up name
happy to hear you are getting tested
thanks for your response.
That's awful that it took so long to get tested!
well, I hope I don't have Hep C either, but if I do, at least now I'm not as terrified or depressed about the possibility as I was before I came here.
I've lost about 15 lbs in the past year. If my "off" liver values are from fatty liver, I read that losing wt can bring them back down, so it will be interesting to see if they did come down.
I'll be back to let you know what the results are. I should have the CBC and chem the same day, I guess the hep c and my thyroid tests take a bit longer.
That's awful that it took so long to get tested!
well, I hope I don't have Hep C either, but if I do, at least now I'm not as terrified or depressed about the possibility as I was before I came here.
I've lost about 15 lbs in the past year. If my "off" liver values are from fatty liver, I read that losing wt can bring them back down, so it will be interesting to see if they did come down.
I'll be back to let you know what the results are. I should have the CBC and chem the same day, I guess the hep c and my thyroid tests take a bit longer.
I am chronic, probably because have had it so long. Ultrasound was good, virus level low, 192,000, didn't do a biopsy since treatment just came out. Genotype is odd for U.S., genotype 4. But has a high cure rate with sovaldi, 96%. My arguement was I am 63, healthy now, didn't want to wait for interferon free treatment. Who knows how long I will be healthy, felt now was the time to do it, and my doc and insurance agreed. Thank goodness my 25 year old daughter tested negative for it. Seize the bull by the horns, educated yourself as much as possible. Sovaldi website has good info. Let us know how you are doing.
The treatment for Hepatitis C took 24 weeks. There is new and better treatment that can be only 12 weeks. What treatment you may require "IF" you do have Hepatitis C - Depends on your Genotype test results and current condition of your liver.
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My AST was normal. My ALT was only very slightly elevated, similar to yours. My Alkaline Phosphatase was normal.
"Will your liver be able to go back to normal or is that damage permanent? how does it affect your life now?"
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The liver does have the capacity to regenerate so I am hoping that mine will improve over time. I don't think my liver fibrosis (Stage 2) really affects my life currently. The severe fatigue I had prior to treatment is now gone. Many of the muscle aches that I had prior to treatment are now gone. I feel considerably better since I completed treatment and sustained a cure.
"I am always tired but my doc thinks that's due to depression and/or stress. I've tried to tell her that I'm depressed *because* I'm too tired to do what I want to but she's got in set in her mind that I'm depressed and that's that."
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Many (if not most) doctors seem to dismiss fatigue as nothing and don't seem to want to recognize fatigue as being due to something other than aging or depression or being too fat. My doctor told me I was just getting old and that was why I was so tired. I knew he was wrong, but it took pulling teeth to get him to listen to me and to order a liver panel. (Actually, it took 9 years to get any doctor to do liver enzymes on me even though mine had been elevated on and off during the 1990s. They said I did not need the tests.)
"To be honest, at this point, I don't know what to hope for- If it turns out I've got hep C but it can be treated and even cured, that actually sounds like a better outcome then being tired all the time and not knowing why."
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Well, I hope you do not have Hep C, but I do agree that, when one does not feel well, getting a diagnosis can be a relief. At least with a diagnosis one knows what is wrong and one can get treatment. Plus, as has been stated, Hep C can be treated and does have high cure rates. I feel considerably better and healthier than I felt prior to treatment. Treatment has really turned my life around. I have a lot of energy and can do many things that I was way too tired to do prior to treatment. I feel normal again. I have my life back.
Best of luck.