Hepatitis B symptoms in pregnancy

When symptoms occur, they can include unusual tiredness, nausea, reduced appetite, discomfort under the ribs on the right side, fever, aching joints, or yellowing of the eyes or skin. Dark urine and pale stools can also occur. These changes are not specific to hepatitis B and can overlap with normal pregnancy symptoms or other liver problems. A symptom does not establish the diagnosis.

A person can carry hepatitis B without feeling ill. Pregnancy screening uses blood tests because symptoms alone cannot show whether infection is present, how active it is, or whether monitoring is needed. Read more about [Hepatitis B](/conditions/hepatitis-b/), [Dark Urine](/symptoms/dark-urine/), and [Fatigue](/symptoms/fatigue/).

Tell your maternity clinician about symptoms, a previous hepatitis B result, or possible contact with infected blood or body fluids. Arrange the recommended blood testing if it has not been completed. A clinician may review liver-related blood results, including a [Liver Function Test](/treatments/diagnostics-and-screening/liver-function-test/), and decide whether specialist follow-up is needed.

Keep appointments and take only medicines, supplements, or herbal products that your pregnancy clinician has reviewed. If hepatitis B is confirmed, ask how results will guide care during pregnancy and planning for the baby after birth. Household or sexual contacts may need advice about [Hepatitis B Vaccination](/treatments/preventive-care-and-vaccination/hepatitis-b-vaccination/).

Contact your maternity team promptly for yellow skin or eyes, very dark urine, repeated vomiting, worsening pain in the upper right abdomen, marked drowsiness, confusion, or bleeding. Seek urgent care for severe confusion, collapse, or difficulty staying awake. These signs need assessment because they may reflect a significant liver or pregnancy problem, not because a symptom proves hepatitis B.

Ask: Have I had the recommended hepatitis B blood tests? What do the individual results show? Do I need liver monitoring or specialist review? What precautions protect my baby after birth? Should close contacts be tested or vaccinated?