What should you know about chances of getting hepatitis B?

Hepatitis B is a virus that affects the liver. It can spread when infected blood or certain body fluids enter another person's body, including through sex, shared needles or equipment, unsterile piercing or tattoo instruments, and transmission from a pregnant person to a baby. A person may have no symptoms, so appearance alone cannot show whether someone carries the virus. Risk is higher when vaccination has not been completed or when a recent exposure involved blood. More detail is available on Hepatitis B.

Possible features include tiredness, nausea, discomfort beneath the ribs, yellowing of the skin or eyes, and dark urine. Symptoms do not confirm the cause; testing is needed.

Check whether you have received hepatitis B vaccination and discuss any missing doses with a clinician. After a possible exposure, seek medical advice promptly because preventive treatment may be time-sensitive. Do not share razors, toothbrushes, needles, or equipment that may carry blood, and use barriers during sex until your status and protection are clear. A clinician may recommend blood tests and, when appropriate, a liver function test.

Arrange prompt medical advice after a needle injury, blood contact with broken skin or eyes, unprotected sex with someone who may have hepatitis B, or concern about exposure during pregnancy. Seek urgent care for severe weakness, confusion, repeated vomiting, marked yellowing, or severe abdominal pain. Dark urine or persistent fatigue also deserve clinical assessment, especially after a possible exposure.

Ask which tests are appropriate, whether vaccination or post-exposure protection is needed, when testing should be repeated, and how to protect household or sexual contacts while results are pending.