Hepatitis B Shots

Hepatitis B is transmitted 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. This can happen through sexual contact; sharing needles, syringes, or other drug-injection equipment; or from mother to baby at birth.

Who is at risk

Although anyone can get hepatitis B, some people are at greater risk:

• Infants born to infected mothers
• People who inject drugs or share needles, syringes, or other drug equipment
• Sex partners of people with hepatitis B
• Men who have sexual contact with men
• People who live with a person who has hepatitis B
• Health care and public safety workers exposed to blood on the job
• Hemodialysis patients
• Hepatitis Risk Assessment

Symptoms

When you’re first infected, the warning signs include:

• (Your skin or the whites of the eyes turn yellow, and your pee turns brown or orange.)
• Light-colored poop
• Fever
• Fatigue that persists for weeks or months
• Stomach trouble like loss of appetite, nausea, and vomiting
• Belly pain

What you can do

To help keep a hepatitis B infection from spreading:

• Get vaccinated (if you haven’t already been infected).
• Use condoms every time you have sex.
• Wear gloves when you clean up after others, especially if you have to touch bandages, tampons, and linens.
• Cover all open cuts or wounds.
• Don’t share razors, toothbrushes, nail care tools, or pierced earrings with anyone.
• Don’t share chewing gum, and don’t pre-chew food for a baby.
• Make certain that any needles for drugs, ear piercing, or tattoos -- or tools for manicures and pedicures -- are properly sterilized.
• Clean up blood with one part household bleach and 10 parts water.

Preventive service at no cost

All newborn babies should get vaccinated. Children need 3 doses of the vaccine at the following ages:

• Birth for the first dose
• 1 through 2 months for the second dose
• 6 through 18 months for the third dose

Children and teens younger than 19 years who did not get the hepatitis B vaccine can still get vaccinated. Talk with your child’s doctor about a catch-up shot.

Adults who are at risk for hepatitis B can also get vaccinated. The vaccine is given in 3 doses. The second dose is given 1 month after the first dose, followed by a third dose 6 months after the second dose. If you’re age 18 and older and at risk for both hepatitis B and hepatitis A, you may be able to get a combination vaccine that protects against both diseases.

Why vaccination is important

Having chronic hepatitis B increases your risk of developing liver failure, liver cancer or cirrhosis — a condition that permanently scars of the liver

What the vaccination is

The vaccination schedule most often used for adults and children has been three intramuscular injections, the second and third administered 1 and 6 months after the first. Recombivax HB® has been approved as a two-dose series for adolescents 11–15 years of age. Twinrix® has also been approved as a four-dose accelerated schedule.

Treatment

There's no cure if you have the condition. If you're infected, taking certain precautions can help prevent spreading the virus to others.

The earlier you get treatment, the better. He’ll give you a vaccine and a shot of hepatitis B immune globulin. This protein boosts your immune system and helps it fight off the infection.

If you do get sick, your doctor may put you on bed rest to help you get better faster.

Additional tips

As with all vaccines, there can be minor reactions, including pain and redness at the injection site, headache, fatigue or a vague feeling of discomfort.

You’ll have to give up things that can hurt your liver, like alcohol and acetaminophen. Check with your doctor before taking any other drugs, herbal treatments, or supplements. Some of them can harm this organ, too. Also, eat a healthy diet.