Firstly – don’t panic! Hepatitis C is not an automatic death sentence. The only way to find out if you have contracted HCV is to have an anti-HCV blood test. Go and see your doctor, they will arrange for you to have the test and then discuss the results and your options with you.

The risk of you catching hepatitis C is very low unless your job exposes you to blood or you live in close proximity with someone who has the disease. The only way hepatitis can be transmitted is through blood-to-blood contact, so taking precautions to reduce your likelihood of exposure will reduce the chance of you contracting hepatitis C.                        

Do not share items such as scissors, razors, toothbrushes and needles. Make sure that any medical and dental work as well as tattoos and body piercings are carried out by approved professionals. They will follow strict sterilization techniques whilst unregistered businesses may not. If occupational exposure is likely, take appropriate precautions such as correct disposal of needles, regular hand washing and wearing the correct clothing and equipment.

Hepatitis C is not strictly classified as a STD as the risk of transmission through sexual contact is very low. The risk of transmission is increased if there is any blood present – either from menstruation or through rougher sexual activities. Also genital ulcers or sores eg. from sexually transmitted infections such as gonorrhoea, herpes or genital warts, or co-infection with HIV will increase the risk.

Using barrier contraception such as condoms or femidoms will help prevent the spread of hepatitis C through sexual contact. Extra strong varieties are available and you may wish to consider using these if there is a higher risk of transmission.

The immune response of individuals varies, making some people more effective at fighting the infection. The virus is capable of mutating in vivo and so pre-existing antibodies against it no longer recognise the new version. There are seven different known genotypes of HCV and some (eg. genotype 1) are more easily treatable than others (eg. genotype 6). It is also possible to be infected with more than one type of hepatic virus.

The antiviral drugs currently available are not licensed for use by those under 18 years of age. Children diagnosed with hepatitis C will be referred to a children’s liver specialist.

It is rare that hepatitis C will be passed from mother to baby. To reduce the risk of transmission, blood-contact should be prevented as far as possible. When the baby is 12 months old they should be tested for anti-HCV to see if they have contracted the disease. Up until this age, they are likely to have been protected by maternal antibodies. Mothers can still breast-feed, unless nipples are cracked or bleeding, as there is no evidence that this causes the spread of hepatitis C.