liver and gallbladder disorders
Hepatitis C, Acute
Diagnosis of Acute Hepatitis C
Blood tests Doctors suspect acute hepatitis C when People have symptoms of acute hepatitis. Blood tests (liver tests) detect inflammation of the liver (hepatitis). People have risk factors for getting hepatitis C. Testing usually begins with blood tests to determine how well the liver is functioning and whether it is damaged ( Liver Blood Tests ). Liver tests involve measuring the levels of liver enzymes and other substances produced by the liver. If tests detect liver abnormalities, other blood tests are done to check for hepatitis virus infection. These blood tests can identify parts of specific viruses (antigens), specific Antibodies produced by the body to fight the virus, and genetic material (RNA or DNA) of the virus. Blood tests are done to look for other causes of hepatitis. The presence of antibodies to hepatitis C suggests that people have been infected with hepatitis C at some time in their life but are not necessarily still infected. If antibodies to hepatitis C are found, the hepatitis C RNA test is done to determine whether the infection is current or occurred in the past. Having antibodies to hepatitis C does not protect people from getting hepatitis C. (In contrast, having antibodies to hepatitis A and hepatitis B does protect against future infection with these viruses.) 