Hepatitis C is primarily triggered by the HCV virus, causing an infection in the liver. Diagnosis is tricky since the condition has many overlapping symptoms. The disease can be acute or chronic. If the diagnosis is made within a few weeks or months, it is acute hepatitis C. However, if the condition is detected after several years, it is chronic.

Knowing the symptoms of hepatitis C is essential for a proper and timely diagnosis. To make it easier, this article divides the symptoms into three stages: early, progressive, and delayed.

1. The early stage
One of the most important things to understand about acute hepatitis C is that the symptoms start showing up between two weeks and six months of exposure to the virus. This timeline varies from person to person, depending on the severity of the condition. Often, the first symptoms will be similar to the flu. Studies indicate that many people with acute hepatitis C may also develop a chronic version of the condition. Such people may live longer than 15 years without being diagnosed with any symptoms. The early signs to look out for mainly include:

• Visual changes: A yellow discoloration of the skin and the eyes and passing dark urine can indicate the infection’s early stage. Both symptoms are similar to what one might experience with health complications like jaundice. However, these visual changes are also accompanied by several physical discomforts.
• Physical distress: Sore muscles, joint pain, fatigue, and nausea are some of the early physical discomforts one might experience. Here again, the intensity of the condition and severity of symptoms will vary greatly.

2. The progressive stage
Hepatitis C is a slowly progressing disease, and it can be many months before the infection can do any significant damage to the liver. So it pays to be aware of the following warning signs as the condition progresses:

• Itchy skin and bruising or bleeding easily with minor injuries may indicate that the infection is spreading in the liver. This can be confirmed when one notices the formation of spider angiomas on the skin, which is hard to miss.
• Further, as liver function is affected, one might gradually experience loss of appetite, unexplained weight loss, and fluid buildup in the abdomen. Swelling in the legs is another sign to look out for, along with the changes in physical appearances.
• The infection also affects one’s psyche and results in hepatic encephalopathy, causing slurred speech coupled with drowsiness and confusion.

3. The delayed stage
The symptoms mentioned above are the early and progressive symptoms of an acute hepatitis C infection. With chronic hepatitis C, one will also experience delayed symptoms diagnosed more than a decade after the infection develops. The disease’s advanced nature results in rapid liver failure, cirrhosis, liver cancer, and even total liver failure.

In advanced cases, the recovery rate is slow, and often, patients require a liver transplant. Early diagnosis increases the chances of treatment to ease the discomfort and improve quality of life.