What You Should Know About. . . Hepatitis B is an illness of the liver caused by infection with the hepatitis B virus. The hepatitis B virus is found in the blood and body fluids of an infected person.
Blood is the most significant transmission source.
It is passed from person to person through direct blood to blood contact via mucous membranes or broken skin. This can occur during sexual contact, by needle stick injury or sharing of IV needles, or from a mother to her baby at birth. Hepatitis B is not spread by casual contact or by contaminated food or water. An individual infected with hepatitis B may have no symptoms, or may have a range of symptoms including fatigue, poor appetite, fever and vomiting. Symptoms of hepatitis B usually occur within 60 to 90 days after exposure to the hepatitis B virus, but they may occur anytime from 45 to 180 days after exposure, and occasionally up to nine months.