Some people may be ill for days or weeks and then recover. Others may recover without realising they have been infected. On rare occasions an acute infection causes fatal liver damage. A few people carry the virus without symptoms. They are known as carriers and maybe unaware that they are infected.
Some carriers develop liver disease while others remain healthy.
Most carriers are infectious but some clear the virus after varying intervals. Cirrhosis is a result of long term continuous liver damage. If the liver is damaged for a short time some of the cells die and the liver regrows to its original size and shape. When the inflammation is severe and continuous, scar tissue, called fibrosis develops. In addition, the liver regrows imperfectly.