Hepatitis A is a serious liver disease caused by the hepatitis A virus (HAV). HAV is found in the stool of people with hepatitis A.
It is usually spread by close personal contact and some times by eating food or drinking water containing HAV. A person who has hepatitis A can easily pass the disease to others within the same household.
Hepatitis B is a contagious liver disease that results from infection with the Hepatitis B virus. It can range in severity from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, lifelong illness. Hepatitis B is usually spread when blood, semen, or another body fluid from a person infected with the Hepatitis B virus enters the body of someone who is not infected.
Hepatitis C is a contagious liver disease that results from infection with the Hepatitis C virus. It can range in severity from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, lifelong illness. Hepatitis C is usually spread when blood from a person infected with the Hepatitis C virus enters the body of someone who is not infected.
Click the links below to learn more about Hepatitis and how you can prevent Hepatitis.
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis C
Broward County Health Department Provides Free Hepatitis Testing And Vaccinations For Hepatitis A and B.
(Click here for more information)
HIV is the virus that damages the muimne system by killing CD4 cells. A diagnosis of AIDS is given once the CD4 cell count drops to 200 or below. The problem with a person who has HIV coming in contact with the virus again is that the virus is constantly mutating. That could cause serious problems with treatment and the way the body responds to the virus. For instance, if 2 people in a sexual relationship both have HIV, it is possible that they could each have a different strain of the virus. That means that if they have unprotected sex and infect each other with their different strains, medications they are currently taking may not work as well on the different strain, and their bodies may not respond the same way to the different strain, increasing the chance of them becoming sick more quickly. That’s why, even if both people in a sexual relationship have HIV, they should have protected sex. The mutation is also the main reason why there is no cure for HIV at this point.