Question

Assertion : Intravenous drug abusers alone have a high risk of contracting Hepatitis A.
Reason : Hepatitis A causes a chronic infection of the pancreas.

• A. Both assertion and reason are correct and reason is the correct explanation for the assertion
  
• B. Both assertion and reason are true but the reason is not the correct explanation for the assertion
• C. Assertion is true but the reason is false
• D. Both the assertion and the reason are false

Answer 1

The correct option is D Both the assertion and the reason are false

Hepatitis A is an RNA virus which infects the liver and results in an acute (short term) inflammation of the liver that is curable. The symptoms include fever, abdominal discomfort due to inflammation of liver, loss of appetite, dark-coloured urine and yellowing of eyes and skin.The yellowing occurs due to high levels of bilirubin in the body which is a yellow pigment formed in the liver due to the breakdown of haemoglobin. Inflammation of the liver increases the bilirubin levels in the blood.

The virus is transmitted through food or water contaminated with the faeces of an infected person. It can also spread through direct contact with the infected individual. Thus, anyone, and not just intravenous drug abusers, who fails to maintain personal hygiene and resides in areas with poor sanitation is at a high risk of contracting the Hepatitis A virus.

Figure : Transmission of Hepatitis A

Intravenous drug abusers are at a high risk of contracting the Hepatitis B or C virus because these viruses transmit through body fluids such as blood. Intravenous drug administration is often done with the help of unsterilized reusable syringes. These unsterilized reusable syringes, if infected with the blood of Hepatitis B or C infected individuals, can transfer the virus to a healthy individual who uses it without sterilising it.

Hence, both assertion and reason are false.