Hepatitis C

• You received a blood transfusion, blood products, or an organ transplant before July 1990 in Canada
• You’ve been in jail
• You use or have used injection drugs, even if it was just once or many years ago
• You’ve been injected or scratched during vaccination, surgery, blood transfusion, or a religious/ceremonial ritual in regions where hepatitis C is common

• Having a sex partner infected with hepatitis C (low risk)
• Born to a mother infected with hepatitis C
• Manicures or pedicures with improperly sterilized equipment
• Tattoos or body piercing
• Traumatic or rough sex or sex toys that can tear body tissue
• Vaginal sex during menstruation
• Multiple sex partners
• Having a sexually transmitted infection (STI) such as lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV)
• Medical procedures with improperly sterilized equipment
• You’ve had kidney treatment (hemodialysis)
• You’ve had an injury from a needle
• Sharing cocaine (snorting) equipment
• Sharing personal hygiene items with an infected person such as nail clippers, razors, or toothbrushes
• You have another infectious disease such as hepatitis B or HIV

• Breastfeeding (unless your nipples are cracked and bleeding)
• Coughing or sneezing
• Hugging and kissing or other casual contact
• Oral sex (unless blood is present)
• Sharing food, drinks, or eating utensils
• Touching or shaking hands
• Using toilet seats

Yes. Although your body’s immune system makes antibodies to fight hepatitis C, these antibodies don’t fully protect you. The virus changes so quickly that it can escape your body’s defenses. This means that you can’t have lifelong protection from hepatitis C, and this is the reason why there’s no current vaccine for hepatitis C available. If you’re treated for hepatitis C and get rid of the virus, you can still be infected again. Therefore, what you do—or don’t do—can affect your level of risk for getting hepatitis C again.

Some people clear their body of the virus on their own in the weeks after they’re infected. But most people who get hepatitis C develop a chronic infection.

When a chronic infection occurs, the hepatitis C virus multiplies in the liver. Parts of the virus trigger the immune system into action. While trying to rid the body of the infection, the immune system kills infected liver cells.

Chronic hepatitis C progresses slowly over 10 to 40 years. But for some people, the interaction between their immune system and liver can result in scarring of the liver (fibrosis or cirrhosis) and loss of liver function.

Statistics on Outcomes of Hepatitis C

Someone with hepatitis C has a 20% chance that their liver scarring will progress from fibrosis to cirrhosis in the first 20 years. Alcohol markedly increases this risk. A heavy drinker with hepatitis C has many times the risk of developing cirrhosis compared to a non-drinker with hepatitis C. Alcohol and hepatitis C both damage the liver. Together, the risk of serious liver damage is much higher than either alone.

If you have hepatitis C, you can give the virus to other people. This is true even if you feel fine. To protect others from getting hepatitis C, follow these suggestions:

• Don’t donate blood, body organs, tissues, or sperm.
• Don’t let anyone else use your razor, toothbrush, or other personal care items.
• Cover open cuts or sores on your skin with a bandage until they’re healed.
• Don’t inject drugs. If you’re injecting drugs, talk with your healthcare provider about trying to stop, and call the Alberta Addiction Helpline at 1-866-332-2322 for help. If you don’t stop, never share your needles, or works (cotton, cooker, spoon, etc.) with anyone else.
• Practice safer sex. Use a latex barrier, such as a condom, every time you have sex. Using condoms also reduces your chances of getting sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

Following these suggestions can also protect you from other diseases such as hepatitis B and HIV.