Thank you so much for your clarification and explanation. It means a lot to me!
Yes you have said it all, the anxiety and depression gets on me sometimes.
Also because I am still living with my family I am worried about them and trying to explain to them to go get vaccinated so I can at least worry about myself alone but I do understand how most African parents think/feel about vaccines these days.
And also I am worried and hope I have not infected anyone in my family because in the past when I havenāt gotten tested for Hep B I shared knives and other things with my family and I remember sometimes my mother braids (and still do braid my hair) and wipe away the blood from wounds from too tight braids.
This leads me to a serious question, if an uninfected person touches the blood of an Hep b person and wash their hands later will they be okay ? And if an Hep B person use knife and mistakenly cut his fingers and later washed and clean the knife can other people use same knife after it has been washed and cleaned ?
And besides blood what are the body fluids that can transmits Hep B to an uninfected person ?
Apologies for any inconveniences and thank you so much for your time, consideration and explanation.
I will try to worry least and care more about myself and health.
With so much gratitude and appreciation
Hi @John,
My guess is you are in Nigeria, right? If so, we do have some patient advocate (s) in Nigeria that might be helpful in talking to your parents/family about the importance of getting tested and vaccinated. Hepatitis B is very common and prevalent in Africa.
In order to infect someone, the infected blood has to find its way into the other personās system (body). For example, for your mother to get infected your blood has to enter her system via an opening somewhere. To avoid any of these issues, vaccination is the best way. Fluids such as blood, semen etc. Saliva, kissing, sharing utensils, eating together, and sharing a bed etc does not lead to HBV transmission. There has to be an exchange of the infected blood, and not just the mere presence of blood if it makes sense. Thanks, Bansah1.
Yes please I am in Nigeria.
A patient advocate will be helpful but I would first like to try again to talk to my parents/family.
Do your patients advocates have offices/centers or places they can be reached in Port Harcourt, Nigeria ?
And do your patients advocate do testing, vaccination and treatments of Hep B ? If yes I would be glad to get connected because the cost of treatment is quite expensive for me.
Yes please, your explanation makes sense to me! And thank you so much for your careful response to my worrying questions.
This person is a fellow patient but has been trying to help when necessary. @Prince_Okinedo can you please respond or jump in here regarding whether you know of anyone that can help help here. Sure, itās worth trying again with them. Best, Bansah1.
Iām not sure if Iām using this forum correctly. But I was told this week that I have hep-B. This has been very hard for me emotionally but Iām also very confused. I had the hep b vaccines between 2004 and 2005. I also found paperwork from 2008 saying that I had immunities. My lab results are confusing and I would really like another opinion. Iām trying to get a consult with another doctor but to ease my anxiety, I was wondering if someone could help.
Hep B core AB non reactive
Hep B surface antigen reactive
Hep B antibody 101.7
Hep A AB total non reactive
Hep C non reactive.
Hi @bb4,
Welcome to the community and I am sorry to hear about all this confusions with your results. You are correct, in that the results shows you do have antibodies against hepatitis B which you got from the vaccination. You cannot have hepatitis B and have antibodies against it at the same time. My thought here is that the surface antigen test is a false positive. This happens at times. Try and let your provider run the surface antigen test with confirmation the next time. I wonāt worry too much especially since your results shows you have a healthy antibody count. I hope this helps, Bansah1.
Please I have some few questions and I would be glad to hear some answers if possible. Thank you!
Questions
please I read on the internet that if you have hepatitis B and the liver is not damage you can go take a hepatitis A vaccine to protect oneās liver.
Please is this true ? Because the the number from my liver function test is pretty okay.
Please find attached to this message my liver function test.
please I also read and heard papaya leaf tea is good for the liver, immune booster and platelet booster.
Please is it advisable to drink the papaya leaf tea?
I am looking at taking this tea in the morning after my morning exercise then shower eat before taking my liver drugs and antivirals in the evening.
Thank you so much for your answers and time. It means a lot
Hi John2
Itās great and interesting questions that everyone should knowā¦
According to the first question.There are two types of hepatitis A vaccine . The first one is inactivated or killed vaccine that widely used many years before and the other one is live attenuated vaccine from China used a few years recently. One of the indications for vaccination against hepatitis A virus is in people with chronic liver disease to prevent further injuries to the liver if infected. Your understanding is correct that you should have vaccination with HAV vaccine. I can boost your immunity against this virus.
The second question about papaya leaf tea which is herbal alternative medicine. Papaya leaf may have potential antioxidant and anti inflammation due to it containing papain ,flavonoids and vitamin E , however, currently there are no evidence based or clinical trials research in human studies that confirm effectiveness and benefits role .Healthy lifestyle eg appropriate exercises, adequate quality sleep at least 7 hours per day , eat adequate healthy diets are proper for improvement of your liver health. I hope this may help you . chul_chan
Thank you so much for your detailed answers.
It means so much to me.
I will speak to my health care provider on Monday about the Hepatitis A vaccine and look out for where in Nigeria I can get vaccinated for it.
As for the papaya tea as a child my parents always prepare it with some other fruits leaves to combat malaria which always work so that is why I got some papaya leaves, boiled it already but decided to drop the question here before going ahead with taking it in the morning.
So now after hearing this I am confused whether to still take it or not hahaha.
Thank you once again with your answers.
Please if anyone here knows/have recommendations to where I can get vaccinated with hepatitis A It will be greatly appreciated.
Hi @John2, @chul_chan is correct. If you already have Hepatitis B and you get vaccinated against Hepatitis A, it helps protect your already compromised liver from further damage. Hepatitis A can do some damage in some people and if you can protect yourself from another possible liver damaging virus, then why not.
When it comes to herbal medicine and stuff, since there are no scientific evidence to support claims made, it is advisable to avoid them as much as possible until you know exactly what it contains and if it is safe. Safety is paramount, so please be careful. If you can get green or black tea or even black coffee (without milk) those can be helpful as well. Best, Bansah1
Thank you so much for your detailed response and explanation.
I will look for a centre or place here in Port Harcourt, Nigeria to get vaccinated with Hepatitis A vaccine to prevent further liver damage.
Please is there any centre or place in Port Harcourt you can recommend for me to get hepatitis A vaccine or know anyone who can help ?
Okay I will stop the papaya leaf tea and get green tea, black tea or coffee as soon as possible.
Ever since I started taking my liver support drugs and antiviral I have been finding it difficult to sleep late at night because I urinate a lot during the day and at night.
Please Is this a common thing when taking liver support drugs and antivirals ?
And I also observe sometimes after taking my antivirals then the veins in my belly(stomach) become a bit visible.
Please is this normal too ?
Thank you so much for your response and sorry for any inconveniences.
Thank you.
Hi, I am not sure what antiviral medicine you are taking but I have been on all 3 first line treatments and never experienced anything like that. If you are over hydrating that will cause you to urinate a lot. There are some medications that can also make you urinate a lot used in people with high blood pressure. I am not sure if this is the case for you. But one thing you can do is to avoid drinking too much water especially close to your bedtime. If you want to drink tea or coffee, donāt take it close to your bedtime. Because tea and coffee can make you urinate a lot as well. Just monitor your water or fluid intake, if it persists, talk to your doctor as frequent urination can be a sign of diabetes, bladder or prostate or other health issues.
Regarding your veins, I donāt think that is from the antiviral. I have never heard anyone else experience something like that. I hope you feel better. Thanks, Bansah1
Thank you so much for your detailed response and time.
Please I am on Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate/Lamivudine. Find a picture attached below. Thank you.
I was asked by my doctor to always drink a lot of water when I take this antiviral to enable be urinate the toxins and all but I noticed itās been interfering with my night sleep so I will try to minimize the water I take when I drink my antiviral.
Thank you.
Okay no worries and thank you for your concerns.
Please when is the best time to drink the green tea ? Before breakfast ?Or early in the morning when I wake up ? Because usually after breakfast I wait for some minutes before taking my medication.
Thank you so much for your help and response. It means a lot.
Hi, I didnāt experience anything like that when I was on TDF. Itās good to hydrate but you donāt want to overdo it. It can lead to electrolyte imbalance because as you urinate that much you are losing important minerals such as sodium, calcium, etc.
You can take it anytime but not close to your bedtime. Maybe between morning and say 2pm, so that by the time you go to bed you would have passed those fluids already.
Thank you so much for your response. I will try not to over hydrate so I donāt loose those important minerals.
But I canāt tell if I am overheating on purpose or because of too much water intake, I will look into it.
And thank you so much for your advice with the green tea. I will do this and hope all goes well with me but itās been a crazy journey for me mentally, emotionally and physically.
But I am trying my best!
I understand and do empathize with you. Itās not easy, but letās take it one day at a time. We shall overcome this one too soon. Remain hopeful. Best, Bansah1
Thank you so much for your words of encouragement and time. Yes some days is not easy for me both mentally, emotionally and physically but I will keep having faith and taking one step and day at a time.
Thank you.
With so much gratitude and appreciation,
John