Treatment for Hepatitis A Infection (Viral Hepatitis)
There is no specific treatment for hepatitis A. Patients generally suffer from loss of appetite, so the main concern is ensuring a patient receives adequate nutrition and avoids permanent liver damage (Mayo Clinic, 2006).
A patient’s perception of the severity of fatigue or malaise is the best determinant of the need for rest. Most patients show complete clinical and biochemical recovery within three to six months of the onset of illness (Koff, 1998; Wilner, 1998; Schiff, 1992).
Treatment of those suffering from fulminant hepatic failure turns largely on the victim’s status. Those who have not become encephalopathic generally undergo an intense course of supportive treatment. But for those whose liver failure is so complete that it has lead to encephalopathy or cerebral edema, timely liver transplantation is often the only option. For these unlucky few, the process of necrosis has left their liver scarred and useless. Unfortunately, many patients with irreversible liver failure do not receive a transplant because of contraindications or the unavailability of donor livers (Feldman, 2002).