protect my kids from hep c

[alluvs]

family memeber that lives with us just yesterday told us he has hepititas c . what should i do to protect my 1,3,& 5 yr old from this? are they safe?

[ceanothus]

This is a three-year-old thread you posted to and I don't know if Bowyer2002 is still active on the forum. You will get a lot of helpful replies however if you click the orange button and "post a new question". Your son's life is far from over, and may not even be affected at all. So far the test he's had only shows that he was once exposed to HCV, but 15-20% of those exposed are able to fight it off successfully on their own. Those who do this will always test positive for antibodies to the virus but do not actually carry the virus anymore and have no worries related to it. In order to know if he is in this lucky group he needs to have another blood test, an HCV PCR test, which looks for viral RNA in the bloodstream. If this test is positive then he is actively infected, but huge strides have been made recently in treating the virus. Most people can now be cured, and the cure keeps getting easier to obtain with each new generation of drugs. Treatment depends on which viral genotype one has, and he would need to be seen by a hepatologist (preferably) or at least a gastroenterologist if he is found to have an active infection.

For those living with the infection it has pretty minimal effects early on and usually takes many years to cause any serious damage, so a young person today has very little risk of having serious effects occur, unless they just stick their head in the sand for 20 years or more. It is NOT a sexually transmitted disease, and those in longterm monogamous relations are not advised to use condoms unless there are cuts, abrasions or blood present. Spouses almost never transmit the disease to one another, and if they do it is most likely via non-sexual blood to blood transmission methods such as sharing razors or nail clippers and getting blood transmission that way. Even childbirth doesn't have a very high risk of transmitting the virus from an infected mother to the newborn. Tell your son to read up on the virus, either here or at hcvadvocate.org. The only thing he should do immediately is to forgo alcohol, at least until he is either pronounced not infected or is successfully treated and cured. Good luck with calming his fears!

[missy102971]

Hi my name is missy we  just found out that my18 year old son was tested positive for hep c thru the blood bank, we are going to get further test done . But he thinks his life is over he always wanted to get married have kids now he seems to think that's not going to happen. but I just read our post and you have a wife and kids , that is awesome , if his test comes back positive for the virus, any advice that I can say to him ? thanks  

[bowyer2002]

FWIW - I have had Hep C since 1983, (was 14 and lived at home) and none of my family has contracted Hep C since then.  I am now 42 and married with 2 kids.
Live a normal life, and treat your relative as normal and you will be fine.
Just my .02 and personal experience.

[tashka]

You children are in no danger at all. They are very safe. Hepatitis C is transmitted only blood to blood. It is not like hepatitis A, for example, which you can get through dirty hands or drinking contaminated water. Common sense precautions is all that is needed. Your children should not use your family member's toothbrush, razor, or nailclippers. If family member has a bleeding cut, it should be covered.

Please let your children love and hug their relative, and share meals/household items with him/her without fear.

[nygirl7]

Most all of us have children and none of them have gotten the disease via anything in our lives or homes.  It's not really logical or possible because it is a blood to blood contracted disease. Now they you were to share drugs or needles with the family member then they would have a chance but otherwise just no........