Ambulance 912HAP 9252
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General health information

Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A is a viral infection of the liver, usually passed on through contaminated food, drink or hand-to-mouth contact. Many people recover fully, but you may feel very unwell for weeks to months, with tiredness, nausea, abdominal pain and sometimes jaundice. Becoming seriously unwell, drowsiness, inability to drink or rapidly turning yellow needs prompt medical assessment.

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  • Hepatitis A is a viral infection of the liver. You can become infected through food, drink or hand-to-mouth contact that brings tiny traces of stool into the mouth.
  • Symptoms range from mild tiredness and nausea to obvious jaundice with dark urine and pale stools. The severity varies from person to person.
  • Most people recover fully and do not develop chronic hepatitis A. Recovery can take weeks to months.
  • No detox, supplement or herb has been proven to cure hepatitis A. Some products can actually put extra strain on the liver.
  • Contact your usual GP (family doctor) if you have symptoms; outside normal opening hours, HAP 9252, the out-of-hours GP service, provides urgent GP care. Ambulance 912 is only for an immediate life-threatening emergency.

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H
HepatitisInflammation of the liver is also called hepatitis. It can be caused by a virus, an autoimmune reaction, alcohol, toxins, herbal products or medicines. Symptoms may start mildly with tiredness, nausea or jaundice, but sometimes progress rapidly to severe liver failure. Confusion, drowsiness, rapidly worsening jaundice, a tendency to bleed and being seriously unwell are warning signs. Do not drink alcohol or start courses of supplements on your own initiative.
Y
Yellow skin or eyes in a babyMany newborn babies become slightly yellow in the first few days as bilirubin builds up. This usually resolves, but colour alone cannot show whether the level is safe. Yellowing on the first day of life, drowsiness, poor feeding, dark urine or very pale stools needs prompt assessment.
G
GallstonesGallstones are hard particles in the gallbladder or bile ducts. Many people have no symptoms. If a stone temporarily blocks a drainage duct, it can cause severe pain in the upper right or upper middle of the abdomen. Persistent pain, fever, jaundice, drowsiness or becoming increasingly unwell may indicate inflammation or a blockage and need prompt medical assessment.