Though they all cause liver disease, they have some differences which include modes of transmission, how severe the illness is, geographical distribution and method of prevention.

Symptoms

• Many people infected with acute hepatitis show no symptoms. For those that show symptoms, they can appear from 2 weeks to 6 months after being infected.
•  Chronic hepatitis symptoms may include fever, malaise, loss of appetite, diarrhoea, nausea, abdominal discomfort, dark-coloured urine and jaundice (a yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes).
• In some cases, the virus can also cause a chronic liver infection that can later develop into cirrhosis (a scarring of the liver) or liver cancer. These patients are at risk of death.