Heavy viral liver damage manifests itself almost identically, have a similar symptomatology, so an accurate diagnosis can be made only after the results of laboratory tests, blood tests. In this case, the diseases have different effects on the body and, accordingly, have individual recommendations for treatment, so it is important to be able to distinguish between hepatitis - the classification of diseases initially included only three types, but recently it became known that there are many more.
How many types of hepatitis exist?
Before starting treatment and diagnosis, you need to know what are hepatitis - all kinds of ailments occur with characteristic clinical symptoms and are similar to each other.
There are types of described pathology:
- viral or infectious hepatitis;
- toxic hepatitis;
- radiation hepatitis.
In turn, the first form of the disease has its own subtypes. There are even multiple viral hepatitis - the classification includes seven varieties of the disease: A, B, C, D, E, F and G. Moreover, they can develop against the background:
- leptospirosis;
- the Epstein-Barr virus;
- syphilis;
- rubella ;
- cytomegalovirus infection;
- herpes;
- AIDS;
- mumps;
- the Lasa fever.
Toxic hepatitis, as a rule, arise due to poisoning with alcohol, drugs and medicines. Also, any toxic chemical compounds can become a cause of intoxication.
The radiation type of the disease is a symptom of radiation sickness and is difficult to treat.
Types of viral hepatitis include a rare form that develops due to severe autoimmune pathologies. Usually improving the state of the body's defense system can reduce the consequences of liver damage.
Chronic hepatitis - classification
As such, there is no separate classification of chronic types of the disease under consideration. The reason is that any of the above types of hepatitis can become lethargic, except for Botkin's disease (acute viral form A).
Chronization of the process occurs due to violations of the therapeutic schedule, non-compliance with medical measures, a special diet. In addition, the hepatitis C virus is very difficult to excrete from the body and, as a rule, it is rarely completely eliminated. With the slightest overload of the liver, a relapse and an aggravation of the inflammatory processes occurs. Unfortunately, often hepatitis causes the death of the parenchyma of the organ and the replacement of cells with connective tissue (cirrhosis).
Classification of hepatitis by degree of activity
Chronic viral diseases are divided into the following varieties:
- With a minimum degree of activity. Symptomatics is poorly expressed, the patient feels well.
- With a low degree of activity. Symptoms are also almost invisible, but the concentration of proteins in the blood is much higher.
- With a moderate degree of activity. Explicit clinical manifestations and symptoms, high levels of bilirubin in blood plasma, kidney damage, increased liver size.
- With a high degree of activity. Severe damage to the body, internal organs, immune system.
- With cholestasis. I feel unchanged, no symptoms and signs. At the same time there is a sharp deterioration in the biochemical parameters of the blood, cirrhosis is developing rapidly.
The last type of chronic viral hepatitis is very rare, but is the most dangerous. The disease is almost impossible to diagnose on time, so it causes a decomposition of the liver, acute attacks, leading to confluence into a coma and death.