The physician must make an accurate diagnosis, support the patient during the acute phase, and provide advice during recovery. Recovery from viral hepatitis A and B results in protective antibodies so that the patient will not get these infections again and cannot transmit them to anyone else. Some people progress to chronic hepatitis. Here, the liver smolders with persistent inflammation. These patients need to be followed closely, usually by a specialist, to address the various problems that can arise from this condition.
Effective treatment is available for many types of chronic hepatitis.
Because some of these patients are infectious and can transmit the disease, they and their families must be educated about how to protect themselves. In the past, viral hepatitis had a well-deserved reputation for being contagious. Contaminated water and poor sanitation provided easy transmission for these viruses. Today, much is known about how the viruses are transmitted so that prevention is usually possible. However, infection still can occur through contaminated water or poor sanitation.