Hepatitis is a severe condition that causes inflammation in the liver. In the early stages of the condition, the symptoms might not appear. Hence, diagnosing the disease can be difficult. The disease is caused by hepatitis A, B, and C viruses, and hep C is considered to be the most serious out of all. Here are some of the most common symptoms of Hep C you should be aware of.

1. Early Symptoms of Hepatitis C
There are two types of hepatitis C, acute and chronic. The duration of the symptoms depends on the type of hepatitis C a person has. When a person has acute hepatitis C, they will experience symptoms for six months or even less than that. However, acute hepatitis C can progress into chronic hepatitis C. Up to 80 percent of acute hepatitis C patients might not experience any symptoms, as per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). However, sometimes, patients start experiencing symptoms soon after getting infected by the virus. They can experience both severe or mild symptoms. The most common symptoms of hep C in such cases are:

• Poor appetite
• Tiredness
• Fever

In people who develop hepatitis C symptoms not too long after getting infected, they might also experience symptoms, which include

• Pain in the stomach
• Vomiting or nausea
• Pain in the joints or muscles
• Abnormal bowel movements or urine discharge
• Yellowness of the skin or the eyes

When the symptoms are early, they start to appear within six or seven weeks after a person is exposed to the hepatitis C virus.

2. General Symptoms of Hepatitis C
In cases where liver cirrhosis has not taken place, the symptoms can involve all the organs of the body. These signs include

• Night sweats, chills, and fever
  In several cases of hepatitis C, experiencing fever every now and then is common. However, the fever remains low, usually below 101 degrees Fahrenheit. It may also come during the night. When the temperature starts to come down, it is followed by sweating and chills. Due to sweating, the person might wake up with their clothes and bedding drenched in sweat. This is known as night sweats.
• Retention of fluid in the body
  Fluid retention is a condition in which the body starts to retain more fluid than required. This extra fluid breaks into the tissues. This can cause swelling on the face, ankles, feet, and fingers. When there is extra retention of fluid in the body, it also increases the frequency of urination at night.
• Myalgia
  This is a condition identified by pain in the muscles. This is a more generalized feeling, but in some cases, it has been reported to be a pain affecting just one part of the body. The pain does not persist all the time and can come and go.