You can get hepatitis B by sharing personal items such as razors or toothbrushes. You can also get it by sharing any type of needle, including needles for steroid shots, tattooing, or ear piercing. Many people with hepatitis B have no symptoms. They don't know they have it unless they get a blood test. But even with no symptoms, they can still become carriers.
Some infected people have jaundice, which causes the skin and eyes to become yellow.
Others become very sick and cannot work for weeks or months. Symptoms of hepatitis B may be like those of a stomach virus. At this time there is no cure. The only treatment for hepatitis B is rest, with a high protein diet to repair damaged cells and a high carbohydrate diet to protect the liver. This shot will be followed immediately with a series of three hepatitis B vaccinations.