Hepatitis Awareness Day

Doctors Urge Vaccination Against Hepatitis B

Hepatitis B and C are global health problems. Worldwide 350 million people are carriers of Hepatitis B. At a reported rate of 5%, the number of Hepatitis B carriers in Pakistan is estimated at around seven million. This places a great burden on the government and the patients.

With this situation in view, the Gastroenterology Section of AKUH marked Hepatitis Awareness Day in January 2002, with a symposium focussing on the different aspects of these dreaded diseases and their prevention.

Prof. Wasim Jafri, Head of the Gastroenterology Section and Chair of the Department of Medicine, stressed in his lecture the importance of vaccination against Hepatitis B which is a    global health issue today. "In Pakistan, out of a population of 140 million, there are at least seven million carriers. This places an enormous burden not only on the government but also on the patients. Millions of rupees are spent on its treatment, which remains unsatisfactory in the face of limited treatment options available. It is actually far better to prevent Hepatitis B through timely vaccination. Hepatitis B can almost completely be prevented by providing vaccination against the infection very early in life, preferably in the first week after birth. There is also mother-to-infant transmission of Hepatitis B which occurs at the time of birth or just after," Dr. Jafri explained. It was  further stressed that the greatest problem with Hepatitis B is that 95% of infants who acquire this infection very early in life become chronic carriers of Hepatitis B. If this infection is acquired in the first year of life, it results in chronic liver disease and hepatocellular cancer in adolescents. However, if the infection is acquired in adult life, less than 10% of patients become carriers. "Hence, it is recommended that all newborns are vaccinated against Hepatitis B.  In adults, the vaccine should be offered to people at high risk, such as health care workers, phlebotomists, dentists, paramedics and nurses," suggested Dr. Jafri. He added that the treatment of Hepatitis B available in Pakistan is at par with the rest of the world.

The Chief Guest, Dr. Mohammad Khurshid, Medical  Director of AKUH and Associate Dean Clinical Affairs, spoke on the importance of Hepatitis B vaccination and urged awareness of Hepatitis B at all levels, especially among the general public so that the current carrier rate of Hepatitis B in Pakistan is reduced.

Dr. Saeed Hamid, Associate Professor at the Gastro-enterology Section, spoke on the risk of Hepatitis C to health care professionals. He said that its prevention is possible with safe blood transfusion, use of disposable needles and syringes, safe disposal of hospital waste, as well as using sterilised surgical and dental equipment. This requires public awareness at all levels. Dr. Riaz Qureshi, Head of Family Medicine, stressed timely vaccination in families. Prof. Gaffar Billoo, Chair of the Department of Paediatrics, spoke on Hepatitis B vaccination in children, while Dr. Hasnain Shah, Associate Professor at the Gastroenterology Section, gave a lecture on the general aspects of Hepatitis C prevention.