What should you know about hepatitis B causes?

The virus can pass through sex, shared needles, blood-contaminated medical or personal equipment, and unsterile tattooing or piercing tools. It can also pass from an infected parent to a baby during birth. Sharing a toothbrush or razor can carry a risk if blood is present. Hepatitis B is not spread by sharing food, casual touch, coughing or being in the same room.

Some infections cause no noticeable illness. Others bring fatigue, nausea, poor appetite, discomfort in the upper abdomen, fever, yellow eyes or skin, and dark urine. Fatigue may be a symptom of hepatitis B, but fatigue alone does not show that hepatitis B is present.

Use condoms, never share needles or equipment that may contact blood, and choose regulated services for tattoos and piercings. Ask a clinician about testing after a possible exposure or before pregnancy when appropriate. A hepatitis B vaccination can prevent infection and may be advised for unvaccinated people or close contacts. If infection is confirmed, follow-up can include blood tests and a liver function test.

Contact a healthcare service promptly after a recent exposure, especially if blood or sexual contact was involved. Seek urgent care for yellowing, dark urine with vomiting, severe abdominal pain, confusion, unusual drowsiness or inability to keep fluids down. A person who collapses or is difficult to wake needs emergency assistance.

Ask what kind of exposure could explain your concern, which blood tests are needed, whether your household or sexual contacts need vaccination, and how results will be interpreted. If you test positive, ask about liver monitoring, preventing transmission, and follow-up appointments.