acute

[gingerw]

I have acute Hep c ( tybe 1b), likely contracted sometime in June. When diagnosed in August my viral load was 21 mil, last week it was down to 115k. Does this mean that my body is fighting it off and winning? ( I am not in treatment yet) Or is it normal for it to flucuate this early in the game? My enzymes (after being off the charts) were almost down to normal, but have started to creep up again. I am confused.

[berlynn]

Thanks for the support, I do feel kinda stupid considering I just had 20/48 and I also don't know an ALT from a AST. You have all encouraged me to be more proactive. I am going to ask for copies of all of my blood work and try to decipher it, hopefully with the help of some of the sites I've seen posted, and also from those of you who are way more informed than me, I guess that I've been way too tired and overwhelmed to educate myself as I should have.   Thanks again,  berlynn

[mofo]

Don't worry about "thread protocol". Those who might complain were also new to this place at one time.  Ask any question you feel the need to have answered, and I'm sure you will get answers. Some folks are cranky cause of the meds- and some folks are just cranky.  Try to remember it's important to laugh at least twice a day, more is better--------------

[willing]

Hi Berlynn, sorry if there was anything intimidating about my welcome - there is absolutely nothing intimidating about this forum. From other posts and personal experience it seems that hair loss slows down later in tx so if that side hasn't bothered you yet it's less likely to crop up now. A common pattern seem to be to have  a harder time at the beginning and end of the 48 weeks and some smooth sailing in the middle - and that's also been my experience. I have never seen any specific interaction reported between smoking and either hcv or combo tx, but, overall, smoking can give the virus pretty good competition as a long term health threat. Best wishes.

[BobK]

Recent studies have indicated that treatment of HCV during the acute phase of the infection is 100% successful regardless of genotype.  While you may wish to wait and see if you are one of the lucky 15% or so who clear the disease on their own realize that 85% of people infected with HCV revert to a chronic infection state....where the odds of successful treatment decline quite dramatically.

a difficult decision to make....best of luck,
BobK

[berlynn]

Hi everyone, Thanks willing and ambush for your welcome and encouragement. Willing, your description of this new and compelling world is quite romantic as well as intimidating. I also have a soft spot for mythology so you have definately entangled my mind and soul. Although a newest of the newbies, I will do my best to maintain and uphold "thread etiquette". I will try not to take any critcism too personally, however I myself have been known to take a double dose of riba. It's funny how the riba and my effexor can look so similar on a dark night while sitting on the water casting lines to entice the biggest or the tenacious. Any way, no wonder my husband wasn't in a courtly temperament.
   Back to etiquette, I did look for answers in the archives but could not find what I needed. As I said, I am not the most copmputer saavy person. I believed someone asked a similar question but I saw no clear answer. I know that smoking cigarettes is a terrible habit, one that my 12 yr old son reminds me of often. But the nurse in my ga's office said that it would not hurt my tx. Does anyone have any valid info here? I know that I should stop but it is quite a stress reliever at this time.
   Ambush... or anyone else who would like to put there 2cents in..,,, After 20 injections (as of tonight) so far my hair has not thinned. I have used Nioxin since before I started tx. Hopefully that is why, but am I to be spared or am I just fooling my feminine vanity? Does hair loss occur later in the process, after 20 weeks?
  Can anyone give me any insight to other comonalities that I need to consider looking forward to with pegasys after 20? Oh, and what about caffine? I did read something about it, but could use a little more info. I have a million more concerns but with this short term memory lapse that I live with these days......I'm sorry if I am overwhelming and selfish to ask so much at one time. Please forgive this newbie's ignorance.
   Now that I have found you all, I hope to build friendships and to be of some help to others as well. Afterall, no matter where we are in this battle, we are all working together in some way to defeat this dragon that has such a hold on our lives.
                                                berlynn

[Ambush]

On the hair loss issue, I've heard that some don't lose any at all.  Mine started coming out heavily around 10 or 12 weeks.  I'm at #23 now and I think maybe there is a slow down. I just bought some Nioxin a week or so ago and only wash my hair twice a week now.  No oil left in my body, anyways.  I've lost half of my already fine, thin hair ~ but no one notices (except me).  I just keep it up in a clip.  My head is getting cold when I go out now...maybe a good excuse to buy a snappy new little hat!  Hopefully you will be spared the hair loss :)
I've read that for one cup of coffee, drink an extra glass of water.  I have one cup in the morning and switch to water ~ glub, glub, glub the rest of the day.

ambush  :)

[willing]

welcome! this is a great place to serve the rest of your time. I discovered it somewhere around my 16th week - didn't know steatosis from halitosis back then. You pick up a lot from reading the posts. Let me give you a tour of the grounds. That group over there with the anxious, slighly puzzled, expression are the newbies. They're respectful, well-spoken, and clueless. The cranky, hairless ones shuffling around in their robes and slippers, muttering about badgers and cursing anyone who gets between them and the bathroom are the old-timers. They can provide a lot of information and can help you through the rough spots but heaven help you if you break "thread etiquette" just after one of them spilled  their pill-box and ended up taking a double dose of riba. By the way, there is no such thing as thread etiquette, we make it up as we go along.

At the top of that hill, high above the fog,  is our pantheon, gleaming in the sun. None of us has been there but it's rumored to be where the olympian gods abide - the SVRs. Occasionally we hear them thundering encouragement down to us from the heights. You hear mooing every once in a while. There are supposed to be cows up there and one of the more deranged gods keeps tipping them over. The long-term residents with the patient, kind,  expression are the relapsers and non-responders. Thy're the heart and soul of the place and remind us all of the human side of this comedy. Eyedeas is our poet laureate and inspires us with a new composition every Friday.

The occasional tourist stops by and if he happens to ask the wrong question the old-timers pounce on him, skin and roast him, and scatter the ashes to the wind -  a wonderful tradition, everyone enjoys it. Well,  welcome again, have a good time  exploring, but watch out at night - there really be dragons in the shadows..

[DH Bill]

You sure put a smile on my Monday morning, thanks
Bill

[DH Bill]

Ohhhhhhhhhhh man the LSD 60s

[AK - Hepper]

Will pokes his head out of the fog!!! ALRIGHT!!! Nice one, definitely don't wanta **** off the thread monitors, they are merciless!

[oldhippiechick67]

Now thats some colorful writing ol chap!  Thoroughly enjoyable and gave me a few smiles and visions!  My daughter bought a Chinese Crested for my birthday this year and to help me through tx.  She is hairless and cranky only when awakened from a nap. She is quite a joy to me.  I am getting more hairless, hang out in my bathrobe frequently and definately shuffle between the bathroom, bed, and couch, and cranky as hell if I cant get a drink of water when thirsty.  I remind myself of the gnomes living in little thatched roof huts in Lord of the Rings.
I hear contented cows mooing from up in the clouds where the SVRs are dwelling.  (Man this sounds a lot like the LSD 60s, I think I better get back to earth now!)
Thanks Willing for the Monday Morning Trippin!

[Ambush]

Hi and welcome!  Willing put together a humorous and pretty accurate picture of this forum (I think I may be in the hairless, bathrobe and slipper group).  It is a great place to come to not feel so alone in your battle.  Sometimes we laugh, sometimes we cry, sometimes we snap at each other, but we are always here to listen and help if we can.  I was fortunate and found the board when I was diagnosed a year ago (I am F 23/48) and I'm sure this would have been a rougher path without everyone here.
ambush  :)

[berlynn]

I stumbled upon this site by accident this morning about 3am. I'm sure some of you can relate to being sooooo tired, and then when everyone else is all snuggled in their warm beds, being wide awake/ or is it tooo tired to sleep. I am relieved to see that their are others out there who have already been through what I am going through now. I have felt very alone. Tomorrow night will be my 20th injection but since I am 1a, I have 28 more to go. I have been looking for a local hepC support group, since I have an endless number of questions and concerns. Hair loss being one of the biggest since so far mine is all here, but I'm scared to death of what might be comming up. Being a woman, mom, grandma, and 46, I am dissapointed to admit---Yes I am still vain. I feverently started to read through recent questions and advice/support. I can't tell you what a gold mine this site can be for me. I plan on perusing the archives...... but in the mean time, Thank you all for being here, and the support and kindess I have seen displayed. As I am not the most computer/ web saavy person, I apologise for any faux pa I may commit. I had to ask my 20 yr daughter what she thought Tx meant. Fortunately she is young enough and does not have the same short term memory loss I seem to find myself surrounded by lately. Any way, thank you all and thank the Lord, I found you. It is OK to feel the way I feel, tired, cranky, ugly, ashamed, depressed, curious, hopeful, supported in denial(family). I need to quit feeling sorry for myself and take more control and learn more about this dragon that has changed my whole life. God Bless.

[willing]

Hi - check out the test results charts for active vs chronic in the following <a href="http://hepatology2.aasldjournals.org/scripts/om.dll/serve?action=searchDB&searchDBfor=art&artType=fullfree&id=ajhep0360s21#head3">review</a>: in both cases enzymes and rna stabilize about 3 months after infection, by 6 months the differnce is clear. Best wishes.

[GI.PA]

yes...your numbers suggest a good pattern.  One is not considered chronic unless active virus is detected six months post the acute flare...so a check in Dec may help clarify this.

Gi.PA

[odessit]

Most likely acute stage of the disease ended. I read somewhere that chances of getting rid of HCV while in acute stage is much higher, closer to 80% for type 1's. I'd suggest you talk to your DR and/or hepatologist ASAP.

[oldhippiechick67]

Check out       http://janis7hepc.com/index.htm
Down towards the bottom is a link called "have you been recently diagnosed"  click on that.  Also it gives a section about interpreting lab tests.  
We only get 6 questions/threads a day.  Try to post new questions under an  existing one.  Thanks and good luck.
I dont think fluctuations such as yours is unusual, and yes your body may be fighting it off.  About 15% of people exposed to it are able to do that and dont require treatment.