World Hepatitis Day is commemorated on July 28 every year, the theme for this year is ” bringing hepatitis closer to you”. The day aims to raise awareness among people living with the viral disease, its consequences, and the ways and means to prevent the spread of hepatitis and fatal complications.
Globally, more than 350 million people are living with viral hepatitis, and about 90 million of those people are living with hepatitis in Africa, accounting for 26% of the global total with 125 000 deaths in Africa every year.
It’s #WorldHepatitisDay!
Bringing #hepatitis care closer to communities and those in need is ?️ to achieving a hepatitis-free future.
Here are 5⃣ things you should know about viral hepatitis ?
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) July 28, 2022
About 400 000 South Africans are living with Hepatitis but are not aware as per health-e organisation
According to the World Health Organisation, (WHO), Hepatitis Viruses is commonly recognized through infections that show loss of appetite, yellow discolouration of skin and eyes, pale stools, dim urine, stomach pain, joint pain, fatigue, abrupt weight reduction, nausea, fever, and vomiting. Importantly, many side effects do not show until the aggravation of the liver, which by large is brought about by infections A, B, C, D and E of hepatitis.
WHO Regional Director, Dr Matshidiso Moeti has called on African governments to commit to distributing care to primary health levels, to reach everyone, no matter where they live, and to prioritize funding for this health threat. Moeti also encouraged other countries to allow health systems to screen blood donations for hepatitis, and to ensure once-only use of syringes, and their safe disposal as those are important contributors to hepatitis transmission.
Although underfunding is a major reason for the neglect of hepatitis B treatment in Africa, it’s not the only issue. South Africa, boasts one of Africa’s best-resourced healthcare systems, but still struggles to deal with this disease. The prevalence of hepatitis B is estimated to be 4–6% of the population, but the exact figure is unknown. And most infections occur in early childhood.
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