Worried about Hep C

I'm a big hypochondriac, and I'm worried about having hepatitis C for some reason.  I'm 25, I've never done any drugs, never had a blood transfusion, or any major surgery, for that matter.  I do have one small tattoo, consisting only of black ink.  I went to a commercial tattoo parlor, and I'm pretty sure everything was sterilized properly, but this was over a year ago, so I don't remember all of the details.  I got it in Texas, which has pretty stringent regulations on tattoo parlors.  I've never had any symptoms that I know of, but I've been having what feels like muscle pain in my upper abdomen, starting about a week ago.  It's not constant, and otherwise I feel fine.

I just went to the doctor for a yearly physical, and all of my blood tests were "normal", except thyroid, which they still don't have the results for.  I'm wondering if I'm worrying for nothing, my family and friends tell that I am.  How would you classify my risk for Hep C, and do you suggest that I get tested?  I'm almost too afraid to get tested, if for some reason I'm positive, it would be devastating to me.  Thanks for your help

[Kevin Pho, MD]

Your risk for hepatitis C sounds pretty low.  If the liver function tests were normal, that would also contribute to the low probability.

A test would be a simple blood draw - this may be able to put your fears to rest.  

Followup with your personal physician is essential.

This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

Kevin, M.D.
http://www.straightfromthedoc.com

[vcj]

How come blood work before surgery is not checked for ALT and AST
so that maybe we could be diagnosed with liver disease a little sooner than 40 years later.