Cholestasis and tx. sx's ????

I researched the web on Pregnancy and itching , because the only other time I ever itched like this is when I was pregnent, and I did it twice !!! What I found out ( because it was 22 years ago) I forgot, is that I had cholestasis. I itched so severly from my 3rd month on , until I gave birth. I found out that it can cause acute hepititis (hepatitis) ? I find this # 1 , interesting , but #2 very confused. How the heck did I get this virus . I know you'll say it dose'nt matter , just try to rid of it now. Yes, that is true but,This opens up a whole new book. I told the dr. assistant about me and the itchies when pregnent, I wonder if he relayed to my Dr. And with this info, why did my Dr. put two and two together and ask me to take some tests to confirm. Does anyone out there know more on this subject and inform me of your knowledge.

                                                 Thanks, again

                                                    Debbie

[Bill1954]

I doubt there’s any connection between the HCV virus and the cholestasis you experienced during pregnancy. While both can cause hepatitis, realize that hepatitis by definition means “inflammation of the liver”.

Alcohol, bile blockage, chemicals, virus, etc can cause this inflammation. The hepatitis you have right now is viral in nature, and an entirely different entity than cholestasis. I’m re-reading what I wrote, and I hope this makes sense. Let me know if I should try a different tact.

Have a Happy Sunday, Happy Deb!

[HappyDeb]

Yes I understand that I have the virus, but can anything with this virus , block bile and start the symtoms (symptoms) of itching ? It just seems to me that there is a connection with me with the pregnancy thing and now hep.C and my itcing ? Is it possible that I can have a blockage ? I have a Dr.s appt. on tues. but It is driving me nuts. This itching is the same thing as what I experienced in pregnancy. I'm just so confused. If you read up on it , it seems that the gallbladder, liver and all are combined. Can you make any sense of this ??????


                                                        Debbie

[ClippedWings]

Debbie,
  Itching itself can be a symptom of liver damage.  In my case, the only symptom I had was a nearly constant itch.  That led me to my doctor and eventually my dx for HCV.  The elevated Bilirubin in the blood that causes jandice can also cause the itching even when the jaundice is not apparent.

[sineglaska]

Hi Debbie,

I also had cholestasis during pregnancy, which might have been sparked by my HCV infection. Cholestasis of pregnancy is a dangerous and rare condition only occuring in 1% pregnant women in US and up to 4% women in Europe (don't know why). Anyway, the point is you could have been infected prior to your pregnancies or the two just randomly happened and are not related at all your luck:( . The bottom line is, cholestasis could cause inflamation (inflammation) of the liver, but never Hep C!
How did your labor go and are your children OK?

The gallbladder and liver are closely related and connected, giving similar simptoms.

By the way, did you itch during your periods after you gave birth? I read on the icp forum that many women do, which is similar to pregnancy caused by elevated hormones.
I was itching during my periods and the past 4 days have been the itchiest ---- but its not my period:(

[HappyDeb]

Hi there,

nO i NEVER ITCHE DURING MY PERIODS. MY FIRST BIRTH OF MY DAUGHTER WAS JUST FINE, BUT ALITTLE TO LONG !!!!! 28 HOURS AND 2 EPIDURELS LATER. MY SECOND DAUGHTER DID COME OUT ALITTLE JUNTICE , BUT WAS JUST FINE A FEW DAYS LATER AND I WAS IN 26 HOURS LABOR AND ONLY 1 EPIDUREL.MY DOCTOR AND DERMATOLIGEST BLAMED MY RASH AND ITCH ON MY TREATMENT AND THERE FORE I HAD TO STOP AFTER 12 WEEKS. MY HEP. DR. SAID THAT SINCE THE BEGINNING I ONLY DROPPED 2.5 VIRAL LOAD SO I AM A SLOW RESPONDER ANYWAY. I AM IN THE PROCESS OF FINDING OUT WHY I WAS A SLOW RESPONDER. I AM GETTING A FERRITIN TEST DONT TO SEE MY LEVEL OF IRON THAT CAN INTERFERE WITH TX. ALSO I WANT TO SEE IF I WAS INOT TAKING SOME WRONG SUPPLEMENTS TO NOT MAKE THE RIBA ABSORB WELL? OR MAYBE MY CLEANSING TEA INTERFERED TOO ? I AM GOING TO BE SEARCHING FOR ALOT OF ANWSERS BEFORE MY NEXT BOUT WITH TREATMENT. I HAVE AN APPT. WITH A VERY GOOD HEP. DR. IN MIAMI, A DR. EUGENE SCHIFF ,IT WILL BE IN AROUND NOVEMBER. I AM LOOKING FOWARD TO BE GETTING RID OF THESE TOXINS IN MY BODY AND GET REAL HEALTHY AND STRONG FOR MY NEXT BOUT. I KNOW WE ARE ALL TRYING TO EDUCATE OURSELVES AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, THAT IS THE REASON WHY WE ALL ARE ON THIS FORUM, FOR WISDOM OF THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN THROUGH IT OR HAVE FOUND OUT NEW NEWS TO SHARE WITH OUR FAMILY OF FIGHTERS AGAINST HEP.



                                                         THANKS FOR YOUR INPUT MY FRIEND, GOD BLEDD

                                                                              DEBBIE