Staying healthy while using and afterwards

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Staying healthy while using and afterwards?

• Duncan Keys
• Mainliners

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What are the main threats to staying healthy?

• Short term
• Long term

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Hepatitis

• Hepatitis means your liver becomes inflamed
  (swollen and tender).
• A common cause is being infected with a virus.
  An inflamed liver can also be caused by
• drinking too much alcohol and the side effects of
  some medicines and chemicals
• a liver disease called autoimmune hepatitis where
  the bodys immune system doesnt work properly
  and attacks the liver.
• There are several different hepatitis viruses
  which affect the liver - the main ones are
  hepatitis A, B, C, D and E.

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Hepatitis A

• Hepatitis A, sometimes called hep A or HAV, is a
  liver disease caused by the hepatitis A virus.
• You can prevent illness by having a vaccination
  that will protect you from being infected for up
  to 10 years.
• Hepatitis A is common in places where water
  supplies and sewage disposal are of a poor
  standard
• Southern and Eastern Europe, Africa and parts of
  the Middle and Far East are high-risk areas.
• Hepatitis A is passed from person to person by
  eating food or drinking water contaminated
  (infected) with the virus.

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Hepatitis B

• Hepatitis B is commonly referred to as HBV.
• Identified in 1965
• One hundred times more infectious than HIV
• Approx 2 billion people worldwide exposed to it.
• 350 million chronic carriers reported.
• Over half a million of these will die annually.

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What is Hep C?

• A family of viruses
• 6 strains
• Genotypes 1, 2, 3..
• Sub types 1a, 1b, 2a..
• RNA virus
• Blue print
• Blood borne virus
• Only/main transmission route is through blood

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Viral Infection HBV HCV HIV
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Immune Response

• The damage to the Immune system cells in HIV is
  caused by the virus itself
• In HBV and HCV the main damage to the liver cells
  is caused by the bodys own immune system trying
  to fight the virus

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Why worry about BBVs?
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The Livera multi purpose factory
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Introduction to the Liver

• It is one of the largest organs and glands in
  your body.
• Just under your ribs on the right hand side.
• It is therefore supplied by two main blood
  vessels
• hepatic artery
• portal vein
• A healthy liver is normally
• dark pink/brown in colour
• weighs about 1.3 - 3.0 kilograms in adults.
• Can regenerate
• one of the few parts of the body that can
  regenerate itself.
• can rebuild a whole liver from as little as a
  quarter of the organ.

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Liver Anatomy
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Function of the Liver

• It is a large and vital organ
• The liver plays a major role in metabolism
• how your body breaks down food and uses it to
  make the energy and materials for your body
• Involved in 100s processes associated with
  metabolism
• Removes harmful drugs and substances from the
  body.
• Balances hormones
• sex hormones, thyroid, cortisone and other
  adrenal hormones
• Stores minerals and vitamins
• Produces bile (gall bladder)
• Important for digestion (breaking down your food)
• Controls many aspects of your body that are
  needed by its specialized tissues.

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Source Hepatitis C Strategy for England.Dept of
Health 2002
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The immune system its roles

• Security guards
• Firemen
• Cleaners

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HIV take out the security guards first!
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The Body is left defenceless