
Health Dictionary
Reliable, easy-to-read patient information on common medical conditions — written in plain language, free of jargon, and grounded in current evidence. Browse the most frequent diagnoses, understand what they mean for everyday life, and learn which steps and questions help you have a focused conversation with your doctor.
Hepatitis A history and symptoms
Introduction
Overview
Overview
Hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection can be either asymptomatic or symptomatic.[1] Symptoms of hepatitis A include fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and jaundice.
Symptoms
Symptoms
Young children who are infected with hepatitis A typically have a milder form of the disease, usually lasting from 1-3 weeks, whereas adults tend to experience a much more severe form of the disease. Some patients, particularly young children, are asymptomatic. When symptoms are present, they usually occur abruptly. Symptomatic adult patients may have a range of symptoms that can vary in severity from a mild flu-like illness to fulminant hepatitis.Symptoms of hepatitis A infection include the following:
- Fever
- Fatigue
- Loss of appetite
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Abdominal pain
- Dark urine
- Clay-colored stool
- Joint pain
- Jaundice (children younger than 6 years of age typically do not show jaundice, while more that 70% of older patients do.)
- Pruritus
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: João André Alves Silva, M.D. [2]
