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Hepatitis, particularly hepatitis C, is often seen on applications for social security disability and SSI disability. How prevalent is hepatitis? According to Dr. Allen Reuben, of the Medical Center of McKinney in McKinney, Texas, two percent of the population of the United States is infected with hepatitis C, a chronic liver disease. According to Dr. Reuben, hepatitis C infection is actually a larger problem, worldwide, than HIV. Like HIV, individuals who are infected with hepatitis C often never know that they have the condition. This is due to the fact that the condition often manifests few symptoms, aside from muscle and joint complaints (though many of the disability claimants I've spoken to remarked that fatigue and tiredness were symptoms they sometimes experienced). What are the risk factors for hepatitis? Some patients will develop autoimmune hepatitis. However, hepatitis sometimes develops as the result of intravenous drug use or blood transfusions that were performed prior to 1990. Other risk factors for hepatitis include tattooing and sexual activity. According to Dr. Reuben, hepatitis C is curable with a treatment regimen that involves once-per-week injections and the drug ribaviran, administered for as long as 48 weeks. Some patients, however, will not respond to the treatment favorably. Hepatitis C is responsible for up to thirteen thousand mortalities per year and is the leading cause of liver transplants. 
Social Security Disability and SSI Disability Information
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