Symptoms of hepatitis B infection

Acute hepatitis B is an infection that lasts less than 6 months. Most people have either mild flu-like symptoms or no symptoms.

Symptoms of a hepatitis B infection can include:

• High temperature
• Tiredness (fatigue)
• Pain in your upper right side
• Feeling or being sick
• Patches of raised skin that might be itchy (hives)
• Yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice)

Back to top

Symptoms of liver damage

Chronic hepatitis B is an infection lasting more than 6 months. You might notice some of the symptoms above. Many people have no symptoms of the virus.

Chronic hepatitis B can cause liver damage. Early-stage liver damage often has no symptoms.

Symptoms of later stage liver damage (cirrhosis) can include:

• Tiredness (fatigue) and weakness
• Feeling sick and appetite loss
• Weight loss or muscle wasting
• Small spider-like veins on skin above your waist (spider angiomas)
• Blotchy red patches on the palms of your hands
• Yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice)
• High temperature and shivering
• Vomiting blood
• Change in the colour of your poo to either pale or very dark and tar-like
• Very itchy skin
• Swelling of your tummy, legs or ankles
• Dark-coloured pee
• Bleeding or bruising easily
• Confusion, memory loss, personality changes, or poor judgement
• Abnormal periods (in people born female)
• Shrunken testicles, swollen scrotum, or swelling or growing breasts (in people born male)
• Loss of sex drive (libido)

Back to top