Tips to Handle Hepatitis C Treatment Side Effects
The medications used in Hepatitis C drug therapy have greatly improved over the last while. This is because of the combination of interferon and ribavirin has been having great success upping the rate of eradication of the illness to closer to fifty percent. Ribavirin is an antiviral medication that is believed to suppress the manufacture of viral DNA and/or RNA cells. As this is a necessary part of the continued existence and reproduction of the virus this drug is essential in the treatment process.
The job of the interferons is to make the patient’s immune system tougher, more capable of fighting the Hepatitis C virus. Interferon is also known for its success with other diseases like leukemia and Kaposi’s sarcoma, which is an AIDS related cancer. It is also showing promising results with several other viral diseases that it is currently being tested with along with eighteen cancers that studies are still underway with. The only real drawback to this double whammy treatment is the side effects.
These side effects can make life very difficult. They can come as quite a shock to someone who is hoping that the intensive drug therapy program will help them. When they are then hit with any number of unpleasant side effects they are frequently thrown for a loop. Before beginning the drug therapy it would be a good idea to make sure that you can take some time off work and have people you can count on, a support system of friends and family, to help you out. Its possible that even the most mundane daily chores will require you to have a little help.
It’s a good idea to try and change your work routine when you begin treatment. Try to get the time off. If you can’t get holiday time see if there is a medical leave you can use. If this is also not possible try to at least reduce your hours, a compassionate employer will try to help. When taking your medication, see if you can do so shortly before you go to sleep. This tends to allow you to spend less time feeling ill. Especially since most of the worst of the side effects occur in the first four to six hours after treatment.
Your body requires a lot of liquid intake during the treatment period. Make sure that what you are drinking is not alcoholic and without caffeine. Clear fruit juices and water are necessary right before and after the injections as it helps diminish the side effects. Another method to help the discomfort is to take an over the counter pain reliever. This must not be Tylenol as it can aggravate the hepatitis more then help it. Some people find that taking the pain reliever before the injection works well to keep the pain under control while others find its better to take it shortly after the injection. Either way pain management is the key to making it through this very important treatment period.