Aa
American Association For The Study of Liver Disease
<A HREF="http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/495211/">ARTICLE</A>
Many subjects are addressed including 1)duration of treatment 2)marijuana and liver disease 3)persistance of virus after treatment. It's at www.medscape.com so you must be registered to view. Registration is free and well worth the time. Mike
Many subjects are addressed including 1)duration of treatment 2)marijuana and liver disease 3)persistance of virus after treatment. It's at www.medscape.com so you must be registered to view. Registration is free and well worth the time. Mike
Weight has definitely become a big issue for me. I can't seem to say NO. I love good foods, bad foods (candy, cookies, chips, etc), and eat much larger portions of everything since being off tx. I have gained about 20 lbs. over my tx weight, and about ten over my normal. Food certainly seems much more inviting now!
I keep meaning to set a real date, etched in stone, where I will begin a new exercise regime and go back to a healthy diet. Probably Jan.1st will be my start.
The chest/throat congestion has reappeared for me as well since ending tx. I have frequent throat clearing throughout the day, but especially in the morning. Odd thing again, is that my wife and kids seem to now have the same chronic congestion, and a nasal inflammation/allergy that runs throughout the full calendar year. It does not seem to respond either to antibiotics, or allergy related medications. My antenna are up
regarding this symptom, as well as the dry irritated eyes, tinnitus, and frequent fatigue symptoms within my family
as well. This is why I am concerned about all the 'other organ' research as relates to HCV infection. The family members are all anti HCV negative...BUT????
Doubledose
I keep meaning to set a real date, etched in stone, where I will begin a new exercise regime and go back to a healthy diet. Probably Jan.1st will be my start.
The chest/throat congestion has reappeared for me as well since ending tx. I have frequent throat clearing throughout the day, but especially in the morning. Odd thing again, is that my wife and kids seem to now have the same chronic congestion, and a nasal inflammation/allergy that runs throughout the full calendar year. It does not seem to respond either to antibiotics, or allergy related medications. My antenna are up
regarding this symptom, as well as the dry irritated eyes, tinnitus, and frequent fatigue symptoms within my family
as well. This is why I am concerned about all the 'other organ' research as relates to HCV infection. The family members are all anti HCV negative...BUT????
Doubledose
<u>doubledose</u> - some thoughts on things you've raised:
1.) "<i>What would keep it from replicating in the organs of casual contacts, partners, close family members from things like kissing, sexual contact, etc??</i>". - This would seem to depend greatly upon the issue of transmisability. If we are talking about two differing levels of viral infection ('high-replicable' being the kind that produces global infection and 'low-replicable' being the kind that lingers without producing global infection), then there may also be differences in the transmisability of each type. Is it possible that low-rep infection is quantitatively too small to produce transmissible infection? I've seen a study suggesting that in high-rep infection, the greater quantity received upon initial infection (eg - from a direct IV injection full of virons versus, say, a needle stick) the quicker one becomes infected and the sooner one then passes from the acute to the chronic stage.
2.) "<i>IF infection can potentially transmit into peripheral organs in other people, would they necessarily have an HCV pos. response to standard serum HCV antibody tests???</i>". - I don't know how sensitive the Hep C antibody test is. If there is low-rep infection, would an equivalent low-level antibody response be enough to show up on current testing? "<i>(Why do the HCV antibodies NOT go away in SVR's???) Is the body still detecting HCV??</i>". - From what I understand, antibodies continue to stay within the system post-viral infection. For example, blood donation/collection agencies uses antibody testing (since it is the quickest and least expensive) as the first line of defense to turn away applicants that show up positve for Hep C antibodies, regardless of whether their bodies have cleared the virus (via SVR or spontaneously).
3.) "<i>ARE we yet totally sure that HCV is purely and only a blood transmitted virus???? ... Why Couldn't it transmit in those tissues? Or sexual mucosa???? Or mucous membranes..eyes..etc?</i>". - Is this possibly also a 'quantity' issue? I don't know if there are any Hep C viral quantity differences between serum and other bodily fluids and tissues. Does serum carry a quantity amount that can possibly replicate fast enough to get beyond the body's immune response, whereas these other fluids/tissues cannot?
<u>Bob L</u> - Good to see you. And great to hear that you've crossed the finish line and are already improving. I hope all continues to go well and that your tests results reflect the same.
May God's blessings and mercy be upon you.
TnHepGuy
1.) "<i>What would keep it from replicating in the organs of casual contacts, partners, close family members from things like kissing, sexual contact, etc??</i>". - This would seem to depend greatly upon the issue of transmisability. If we are talking about two differing levels of viral infection ('high-replicable' being the kind that produces global infection and 'low-replicable' being the kind that lingers without producing global infection), then there may also be differences in the transmisability of each type. Is it possible that low-rep infection is quantitatively too small to produce transmissible infection? I've seen a study suggesting that in high-rep infection, the greater quantity received upon initial infection (eg - from a direct IV injection full of virons versus, say, a needle stick) the quicker one becomes infected and the sooner one then passes from the acute to the chronic stage.
2.) "<i>IF infection can potentially transmit into peripheral organs in other people, would they necessarily have an HCV pos. response to standard serum HCV antibody tests???</i>". - I don't know how sensitive the Hep C antibody test is. If there is low-rep infection, would an equivalent low-level antibody response be enough to show up on current testing? "<i>(Why do the HCV antibodies NOT go away in SVR's???) Is the body still detecting HCV??</i>". - From what I understand, antibodies continue to stay within the system post-viral infection. For example, blood donation/collection agencies uses antibody testing (since it is the quickest and least expensive) as the first line of defense to turn away applicants that show up positve for Hep C antibodies, regardless of whether their bodies have cleared the virus (via SVR or spontaneously).
3.) "<i>ARE we yet totally sure that HCV is purely and only a blood transmitted virus???? ... Why Couldn't it transmit in those tissues? Or sexual mucosa???? Or mucous membranes..eyes..etc?</i>". - Is this possibly also a 'quantity' issue? I don't know if there are any Hep C viral quantity differences between serum and other bodily fluids and tissues. Does serum carry a quantity amount that can possibly replicate fast enough to get beyond the body's immune response, whereas these other fluids/tissues cannot?
<u>Bob L</u> - Good to see you. And great to hear that you've crossed the finish line and are already improving. I hope all continues to go well and that your tests results reflect the same.
May God's blessings and mercy be upon you.
TnHepGuy
I appreciate your responses to my questions. You are thinking along the same lines that I am. There may be differing quality and quantity of infection, according to the organ or tissue that it infects. One might have rapidly replicating HCV infection in serum and liver, but the virus may only be capable of a lower level infection in the lymphatic system for example, or salivary system, gastric mucosa, sexual mucosa, eyes, etc.
Maybe the multiple symptoms that we see in HCV patients are caused by DIRECT infection of the organ in question, NOT just some vague system-wide autoimmune response.
If this is the case, we have a bigger problem on our hands...
1. For those who achieve SVR from blood and liver, is there a post-tx lingering infection in some patients, within other organs....and can this eventually cause reinfection many years down the road, given the right circumstances???
2. How do we know that we are not infecting all those who we have sexual, or intimate contact with, within peripheral organs, thus setting them up with a lingering peripheral infection that might 'blossom' at some point in the future. Note the Egyptian HCV studies showing an ever-increasing percentage of spousal positivity for HCV AFTER 20 to 25 years of marriage. WHY the long delay?? (If HCV either infects the blood immediately or does not, as experts today believe)
3. What are the implications of long-term 'other-organ' infection with HCV, even if it is not present in the blood or liver? Might it not already be 'out there' causing any number of unidentified syndromes like CFS, non-allergic rhinitis, sjogrens syndrome-like diseases, FM, lupus, etc? If the peripheral infection of organs is sub-clinical enough to not provoke a major antibody response to HCV testing, then do we really understand the possible extent of the infection?
Note: I continue to see odd, HCV-like symptoms in family members, especially spouse, and remember previous sexual partners showing several similar symptoms years ago. Sx like dry eye, memory lapse, fatigue, odd skin rashes, very dry skin, sinus and throat inflammation (chronic), floaters in eyes, etc. etc. All have tested NEGATIVE for HCV....BUT????
If there is specific organ infection...it is easy to jump to the next conclusion!
What are your thoughts?
Doubledose
Maybe the multiple symptoms that we see in HCV patients are caused by DIRECT infection of the organ in question, NOT just some vague system-wide autoimmune response.
If this is the case, we have a bigger problem on our hands...
1. For those who achieve SVR from blood and liver, is there a post-tx lingering infection in some patients, within other organs....and can this eventually cause reinfection many years down the road, given the right circumstances???
2. How do we know that we are not infecting all those who we have sexual, or intimate contact with, within peripheral organs, thus setting them up with a lingering peripheral infection that might 'blossom' at some point in the future. Note the Egyptian HCV studies showing an ever-increasing percentage of spousal positivity for HCV AFTER 20 to 25 years of marriage. WHY the long delay?? (If HCV either infects the blood immediately or does not, as experts today believe)
3. What are the implications of long-term 'other-organ' infection with HCV, even if it is not present in the blood or liver? Might it not already be 'out there' causing any number of unidentified syndromes like CFS, non-allergic rhinitis, sjogrens syndrome-like diseases, FM, lupus, etc? If the peripheral infection of organs is sub-clinical enough to not provoke a major antibody response to HCV testing, then do we really understand the possible extent of the infection?
Note: I continue to see odd, HCV-like symptoms in family members, especially spouse, and remember previous sexual partners showing several similar symptoms years ago. Sx like dry eye, memory lapse, fatigue, odd skin rashes, very dry skin, sinus and throat inflammation (chronic), floaters in eyes, etc. etc. All have tested NEGATIVE for HCV....BUT????
If there is specific organ infection...it is easy to jump to the next conclusion!
What are your thoughts?
Doubledose
Interesting comments. I also had the thirty or so years of 'not normal' bowel movements, soft, loose, wierd...
Also had the small red pinpoint dots on legs and arms which do have a medical name (purpura? I'm not sure)
Also had the soft, always tearing, fingernails and toenails.
Since mid-tx, and ever since finishing tx, all the above have changed for the better. Normal bowels (amazingly) , hard nails, skin very elastic and with rosy color, etc. The arthritic pains are slowly fading (which I suffered from for decades) and no headaches!
I assume all these symptome WERE caused by HCV, and it's effect on our immune system. MAYBE they are resolved. I sure hope so.
As far as the other organ infection that I have speculated about, I believe that it WOULD indeed be HCV, but in isolated organ systems, and at such a low level that it cannot break into our circulatory system. I am sure I remember several top hepatologists about five years ago saying that after SVR they still found HCV in the spleen and other organs, but that it should cause no long term problems after SVR. I thought that was odd then, and in recent years, none of the docs address that issue very openly, so I am not sure what has changed. Maybe they are all now 'aboard' on the SVR = CURE train, but now other researchers are casting doubt on the idea of total/absolute clearance from all organs.
I do not really have any idea how this 'compartmentalized' infection might work, without reinfecting the person who is now SVR, but I think TnHepGuy ventured some very intriguing thoughts above within this thread.
I see the 'sjogrens-syndrome' type symptoms in myself and family, and several past partners, and I am pushed into thinking there is some common connection. I have to ask the question: Why would HCV NOT tend to infect or migrate into salivary tissues, eyes, sexual organs, gastric system , etc. especially when they (researchers) seem to be recovering live virus from those same fluids/tissues (in a wide array of research studies).
If the virus DOES move into those fluids/tissues then we have a much bigger problem out there than anyone realizes.
When they test for sexual transmission, they are testing to see if the serum has become HCV+, NOT whether the sexual tissues/fluids are infected with replicating HCV. That would call for PCR tests of the specific fluids!
I don't have answers yet, just lots of questions, and observations!
Glad our worst symptoms are no longer hanging around. That in itself is a major victory.
DoubleDose
Also had the small red pinpoint dots on legs and arms which do have a medical name (purpura? I'm not sure)
Also had the soft, always tearing, fingernails and toenails.
Since mid-tx, and ever since finishing tx, all the above have changed for the better. Normal bowels (amazingly) , hard nails, skin very elastic and with rosy color, etc. The arthritic pains are slowly fading (which I suffered from for decades) and no headaches!
I assume all these symptome WERE caused by HCV, and it's effect on our immune system. MAYBE they are resolved. I sure hope so.
As far as the other organ infection that I have speculated about, I believe that it WOULD indeed be HCV, but in isolated organ systems, and at such a low level that it cannot break into our circulatory system. I am sure I remember several top hepatologists about five years ago saying that after SVR they still found HCV in the spleen and other organs, but that it should cause no long term problems after SVR. I thought that was odd then, and in recent years, none of the docs address that issue very openly, so I am not sure what has changed. Maybe they are all now 'aboard' on the SVR = CURE train, but now other researchers are casting doubt on the idea of total/absolute clearance from all organs.
I do not really have any idea how this 'compartmentalized' infection might work, without reinfecting the person who is now SVR, but I think TnHepGuy ventured some very intriguing thoughts above within this thread.
I see the 'sjogrens-syndrome' type symptoms in myself and family, and several past partners, and I am pushed into thinking there is some common connection. I have to ask the question: Why would HCV NOT tend to infect or migrate into salivary tissues, eyes, sexual organs, gastric system , etc. especially when they (researchers) seem to be recovering live virus from those same fluids/tissues (in a wide array of research studies).
If the virus DOES move into those fluids/tissues then we have a much bigger problem out there than anyone realizes.
When they test for sexual transmission, they are testing to see if the serum has become HCV+, NOT whether the sexual tissues/fluids are infected with replicating HCV. That would call for PCR tests of the specific fluids!
I don't have answers yet, just lots of questions, and observations!
Glad our worst symptoms are no longer hanging around. That in itself is a major victory.
DoubleDose
God it's great to here from all of you. I am off tx about and 4 wks and feeling better. I will test on Monday and we will see what we see. I missed my appointment on Thurs, I have been so darn busy with business and going to court for my grandson.
Anyway God Bless all of you and have a great Holiday what ever you believe or don't belive.
TnHepGuy, chevygal55, Willing, Mikesimon, giddyup, layla tallblonde, doubledose, jonihs, honey15637 and all the rest of you I missed!
Your freind
Bob L
Anyway God Bless all of you and have a great Holiday what ever you believe or don't belive.
TnHepGuy, chevygal55, Willing, Mikesimon, giddyup, layla tallblonde, doubledose, jonihs, honey15637 and all the rest of you I missed!
Your freind
Bob L
Have an Answer?
You are reading content posted in the Hepatitis C Community
Learn about this treatable virus.
Getting tested for this viral infection.
3 key steps to getting on treatment.
4 steps to getting on therapy.
What you need to know about Hep C drugs.
How the drugs might affect you.
These tips may up your chances of a cure.
A list of national and international resources and hotlines to help connect you to needed health and medical services.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Condoms are the most effective way to prevent HIV and STDs.
PrEP is used by people with high risk to prevent HIV infection.
