I am adopting a child who has the antibodies for Hep C.

I have decided to adopt a child that has the Hep C antibodies.  How much risk am I taking.  He has know sign of the desease. I am already in love with him but I am concerned about my other children.  How easy can it be transmitted (if at all) to family members????
Thanks sooo much for your guidance

[nurse12hr]

I would say very little risk at all.  My husb. had hepC for probably close to 20 years before we found out.  I am neg, after all this time and after a lot of exposures!  

There are common sense things to do, such as not sharing toothbrushes (tho I must admit before we knew he had it, we often used each others toothbrushes).  I treated his  cuts and bruises, too, many times (he rides a dirt bike) without gloves or anything, so I guess I had even lots of direct contact with his blood and didn't get it.  

Just be careful and use common sense, and get as much info as you can from a good gastroenterologist or hepatologist as to what treatment or follow up the child will need.  They will give you plenty of info on limiting exposure to others.  

Congrats, and good luck!

[MajNeni]

Antibodies to HCV may be a sign that he has been infected and cleared the infection!  Or, the child may still have it and then it's probably chronic.  A doctor can check for the second possibility with blood tests.  
HCV is only spread blood-to-blood, as far as we know, so if the little one is still infected, make sure not to share personal care items (toothbrushes, nail care items, etc., and anything that might cause/encounter tiny cuts or pokes.)  Drinking from the same cup, kissing and hugging, bumping into each other and other casual contact will not spread the virus to others.  Children usually handle HCV better than adults.  Your doctor should monitor the child and help determine if any medical treatment will be needed.
It is wonderful that you are adding this little person to your family.  
Maj Neni

[DH Bill]

Like Christy said use common sense but don't worry. I have had hcv for for 36 years and married to the same woman for 31 of that. Didn't know I had it til 1998. My wife has taken care of me when I have been broken and bloody and we were never careful about razors or tooth brushes before I was dx and she is negative. Hey! love makes the world go round :)
Bill
Hey Christy, tell that husband of yours to get some ridin protection. I race downhill mountain bikes and have found out it covers a multitude of sin. I much rather be a wimp with gloves, pads and full face helmet but live to ride another day.

[t2622b]

Should I were gloves  when he is being bandaged? If so should I do this with all my children so that I don't make him feel different.
t622b

[DH Bill]

I know about the trees! I wear full body armor and have still got hurt. I have full body armor it helped when I went over the handle bars from 12 ft in the air onto my chest but it still hurts 2 yrs later. I guess were just kinda crazy huh :)

[nurse12hr]

LOL!!!!!

Of course he wears full protection, but unless he starts wearing a suit of armor, crashing into trees going about 50 mph in the woods is gonna leave some ouchies!

Has broken femurs, lacerated liver, broken ribs, etc.  Perhaps he should just get better at it!

[jonihs]

I think it depends on the age of the children involved, but I think I would do it,and tell them some reason why they are all very special and you don't want to put them at risk for pesky germs. God Bless you and I hope they can clone you.   Joni

[seashell55]

I have had Hep C for nearly 30 years.  I have two children.  Both children and husband have tested negative.  And beieve me there have been many many opportunities to pass this virus along.

As everyone has stated in the above post, common sense is warranted.  Congratulations on the adoption.  It is a wonderful thing to give someone a second chance in life.  The only thing I foresee is that you will drive yourself crazy with worry everytime he gets hurt. If this is a major concern for you, get yourself a blood pathogen kit (talk to your pharmacist), it has all the stuff you need to take care of someone with a blood disease (masks, rubber gloves, sterile dressings, alcohol preps and such).

Life is so short and full of complications.  Sit back and enjoy your children. In the blink of an eye, tomorrow will come and they will be off starting their own new adventure in life.  

[t2622b]

Thanks for your comments.  I need the encouragement.  I am soooo excited to get this beautiful little child but sooo scared of what his future holds.  They say he may never get sick that he may have just faught the disease off himself.  I hope this is the case but if not I am still encouraged by all of you who live a normal and happy life.

I will probably have lots of questions since I don't know much about Hep C so please understand my ignorance.

Thanks again for your encouragement

[Heather23]

Hi, I adopted our daughter from Russia 5 years ago,
when she was 2 1/2. At the time we were told she had Hep B, but when we got her home it turned out that she had Hep C antibodies, not Hep B. Believe me, I know how it feels to be totally in love with a child and yet terrified that they are going to have a life-threatening condition! I cried for a week when they told us she had Hep B, but we still went and got her. After we got her home  
and found Hep C instead, I didn't know what to think. My daughter has apparently cleared the virus on her own and has had negative PCR-RNAs for 5 years, but every now and then I go look things up to see what the latest research is, and that's how I ran across your message. Here's what you need to know:

1. If you are adopting from overseas, chances are reasonable that the test itself is innacurate. We thought we were adopting a blind, Hep B-positive child who needed heart surgery as well, and instead we got an amazing little girl with a perfect heart, Hep C antibodies, and eyes  that were fine after eye surgery. I kept telling people we were cheated out of our special-needs child. If they tested liver enzymes and they were normal, that's a very good sign.

2. From everything I've read, it's much better to get Hep C as a child than Hep B. Children clear the virus much more often than adults, so Hep C antibodies don't necessarily mean that your child has an active case. They need to do a PCR-RNA to tell if the virus is still present. The 15% figure for spontaneous clearing is an adult figure - it's probably more like 50% for young children (at least last time I checked).

3. A child with active Hep C probably has decades to let the medical community do its magic. Already in the 5 years since I started researching Hep C, the prognosis is much better for the nastiest cases. But most cases don't get nasty anyway.

If your heart is telling you that this is your child, that's the most important thing. I knew my daughter was mine no matter what, and while things were awful and scary for a few months, the day-to-day part of life quickly takes over from the long-term worries. If, on the other hand, you find yourself feeling guilty over "abandoning" this child and really want out, don't adopt this one! It is totally normal to feel like you are putting your head into a noose when adopting even a perfectly healthy child, so just being terrified doesn't count as useful information on what you should do.

Good luck! My heart goes out to you. I wouldn't want to go through those anxiety-filled early weeks again for anything!