HCV Antibody:
Why HCV Antibody Test?
CLINICAL INFORMATION
The liver is the most important organ that performs a variety of functions for normal functioning of the body which includes synthesis of significant biomolecules such as enzymes, hormones etc, stores vitamins, sugars and iron to help give the body energy, regulates the metabolites such as cholesterol, clears the metabolic end-products from the blood, synthesis of clotting factors, produces immune factors to combat infections, releases bile for the absorption of fats etc. Hepatitis C is a viral infection that causes inflammation to the liver and in certain cases can complicate leading to serious liver damage such as liver cirrhosis and or liver fibrosis, hepatocellular carcinoma etc. The incubation period is 14 to 80 days. Hepatitis C virus -HCV can lead to acute or chronic hepatitis infection. The incidence of hepatitis C is spread through contaminated blood and moreover, the other causes include eg. Blood transfusion, vertical transmission, sharing unsterilized needles, syringes, dialysis, tattooing (reuse of contaminated needles) etc. Clinical manifestations include bleeding easily, bruising, fatigue, jaundice, dark urine, ascites, edema, poor appetite, weight loss, hepatic encephalopathy (confusion, drowsiness, slurred speech etc), spider angiomas (appearance of spider-like blood vessels on the skin) etc. Chronic untreated cases can lead to complications such as cirrhosis of the liver, liver cancer, liver failure and other extrahepatic complications. The importance of this test is to screen for the presence of the hepatitis C virus in people (especially in pregnant women) and to determine the infectivity of hepatitis C virus carriers (since it is highly contagious). This test also helps monitor the status of individuals with chronic hepatitis C and prognosis. HCV infection can be diagnosed by HCV RNA detection by PCR, anti-HCV antibodies or screening for HCV antigens by ELISA to determine the viral load, immunoassays, immunoblot etc. Other tests include liver function test and liver enzymes to measure potential liver damage (liver inflammation) caused by a hepatitis-B virus (i.e enzyme assays) such as alanine aminotransferase (ALT) elevated during inflammation of the liver, PCR to measure HBV –DNA, fibroscan for transient elastography and Aspartate Amino-Transferase (AST) to platelet ratio for the assessment of liver cirrhosis.
General Instructions:
Sample Requirement: Specimen - Blood sample collected from the vein. Test Preparation: None.
NOTE - Sample for specimen collections may vary based on the patient’s condition/cases according to the patient’s presenting complaints/signs or symptoms:
SPECIMEN REQUIREMENT (Special or Rare Cases) - As instructed and guided by Physician / Clinician / Pathologist / as per Laboratory’s requirements, according to procedures and protocols.
This Multi-Specialty Clinical Referral Laboratory RT DIAGNOSTICS provides precise and accurate tests with an extensive range of testing services to the medical centres to help in the diagnosis and identification of pathology in the test specimens for infectious diseases and also to evaluate the function of organ systems of the patient. It prevents further complications and helps to stabilize and restore health to near normalcy at the earliest without delay.
