Hepatitis C Virus

Single stranded RNA, incubation period    2-26 weeks

Most common chronic blood-borne infection    

             

Routes of Transmission

 - Inoculations

 - Blood transfusions

 - Sexual intercourse

 - Perinatal

Diseases

 - Acute hepatitis (rarely fulminant)
 - Chronic hepatitis
characteristic clinical feature is episodic    elevations in serum aminotransferases
 - Cirrhosis
  . In 20%-30% of patients with chronic infection
  . After 5-20y of acute infection