My Diagnosis and Early Days of Treatment for Hepatitis C
DIAGNOSIS
I was told that I have Hepatitis C on Apri 21, 1999, at Louisiana State University Medical Center (LSUMC). I had been going there just to make arrangements to have my gall bladder out. LSUMC is less expensive than the local hospital. But blood tests showed abnormal liver enzymes and a sonogram showed an enlarged liver, so they required more tests. And I got a Hep C diagnosis. I had a number of operations (hip replacements) before 1992 and I have been told it is safe to assume that I acquired the virus in a blood transfusion with one of those operations.
I am scheduled for a liver biopsy on May 13. I may have contracted Hep C in operations in 1984, and my daughter was born in 1985. She will be tested later in May to see if I passed the virus onto her.
While waiting for my biopsy and results, I am on the internet to learn more about hepatitis.
To get information, I first had to learn to spell "hepatitis." I thought it was "hepatitus" and my searches were not turning up anything.
Some of the symptoms of liver disease I have are unexplainable occasional vomiting and diaahrea, fatigue, and mental "fogginess" sometimes. My memory is still good, but I grope for the right words to describe something much more often than ususal. These days, I can only spend about an hour on the internet before I get really tired.
This is another one of those times in your life when you find out who your real friends are. I am sad that over the years I have found out that most people are "fair weather" friends. My fatigue is called "laziness" by many people and I have been really hurt by a number of comments. I often say that I look forward to Judgment Day. The thought of Judgment Day is scary to many people, but I think of it as a day when I will be vindicated!
BIOPSY DAY
Biopsy day, May 13, turned into a two-day event. The first day, I arrived at the hospital with my brother and was admitted to an "outpatient" room. At LSU there is a whole area for patients who come in for "day" procedures, like liver biopsies and dialysis.
Then the wait began. I was "thumped" like a melon several times to determine where to do the "stick." Finally, a "committee" determined that I didn't have much to aim at and to minimize the chances of hitting lung or colon tissue a guided procedure was called for. So, I was scheduled for a transjugular procedure May 14 and sent home for the night.
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