What is Hepatitis C?
{{update|date=January 2024}} {{Infobox disease | Name = Hepatitis C | Image = HCV EM picture 2.png | Caption = [[Electron micrograph]] of [[hepatitis C virus]] purified from cell culture (scale = 50&nbsp;[[nanometers]]) | DiseasesDB = 5783 | ICD10 = {{ICD10|B|17|1|b|15}}, {{ICD10|B|18|2|b|15}} | ICD9 = {{ICD9|070.70}},{{ICD9|070.4}}, {{ICD9|070.5}} | OMIM = 609532 | MedlinePlus = 000284 | eMedicineSubj = med | eMedicineTopic = 993 | eMedicine_mult = {{EMedicine2|ped|979}} | MeshID = D006526 }} '''Hepatitis C''' is an [[infection]] that mostly affects the [[liver]]. The hepatitis C [[virus]] (HCV) causes this disease.<ref name=Sherris>{{cite book | title = Sherris Medical Microbiology | url = https://archive.org/details/sherrismedicalmi0000unse_q1i3 | edition = 4th | publisher = McGraw Hill | year = 2004 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/sherrismedicalmi0000unse_q1i3/page/551 551]–2 | isbn = 0838585299 | editor = Ryan KJ, Ray CG }}</ref> Often, a person with Hepatitis C does not have any health problems or signs that they have the disease. However, [[chronic]] infection can scar the liver. Many years of infection may cause [[cirrhosis]]. Sometimes, people with cirrhosis also have [[liver failure]] or [[liver cancer]]. They can also have very swollen veins of the [[esophagus]] and [[stomach]]. The blood loss from this problem can kill.<ref name=Sherris/> Hepatitis C is usually spread by blood-to-blood contact, when blood from a person with Hepatitis C touches or gets into another person's [[bloodstream]]. The most common ways that this happens are through [[Intravenous|intravenous drug use]] (when a person shoots drugs into one of their veins, with a needle that was already used by a person infected with Hepatitis C); nonsterile medical equipment (medical tools that were not cleaned well enough after being used on an infected person); and [[blood transfusion]]s (when a person is given blood that came from an infected person). A