Hepatitis E Symptoms

For the most part, symptoms of hepatitis E are mild and last for a couple of weeks. Not everyone infected with the hepatitis E virus will develop symptoms. When hepatitis E symptoms do occur, they appear between 14 and 60 days after infection with the hepatitis E virus (a period known as the "hepatitis E incubation period"). Some specific hepatitis E symptoms include fatigue, a sore throat, joint pain, and excessive tiredness.

 

An Overview of Hepatitis E Symptoms

When a person becomes infected with the hepatitis E virus, it begins to multiply within the liver. Fourteen to 60 days later, a person may develop hepatitis E symptoms. This period between transmission of the virus and the start of symptoms is called the "hepatitis E incubation period."
 
Not everyone who is infected with the virus will develop symptoms, however. Some people may also have symptoms that are so mild as to go unnoticed.
 

Specific Hepatitis E Symptoms

If symptoms of hepatitis E do occur, they usually appear abruptly.
 These symptoms (especially early ones) may be similar to the stomach flu and can include:
 
  • Fatigue
  • Excessive tiredness
  • A lack of appetite
  • Nausea
  • Diarrhea
  • A low-grade fever
  • Muscle pain
  • Joint pain
  • A sore throat
  • Dark urine
  • Pale-colored stool
  • Stomach pain (or abdominal pain) on the right side.
     
Jaundice (yellowing of the skin or the whites of the eyes) usually occurs several days (up to two weeks) after these early hepatitis E symptoms. When jaundice appears, the early symptoms tend to improve -- although weight loss may continue.
 
Symptoms of hepatitis E are indistinguishable from hepatitis A symptoms.
 
(Hepatitis E Symptoms Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD