KARACHI - Leading hepatologists and gastroenterologists of the country have urged the upcoming federal and provincial governments to screen every Pakistani for Hepatitis B and C infections.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared Pakistan a “highly endemic country” for viral hepatitis where millions of people are carrying these lethal viruses.

“We urge the upcoming federal and provincial governments to screen every Pakistani for Hepatitis B and C infections because this disease is highly endemic as per WHO standards and resulting in loss of 40,000-50,000 lives annually in the country,” eminent gastroenterologist and President of Pakistan Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases Society Dr Sajjad Jamil told a news briefing here on Saturday.

The news briefing in connection with the World Hepatitis Day 2018 was held at Karachi Press Club (KPC) where a free screening camp for KPC members and their families was also organized by the society. An awareness walk was arranged to create awareness about the viral hepatitis.

Liver diseases specialists claimed that Hepatitis B and C were “spreading like fire” in Pakistan where, according to some estimates, around 18 to 20 million people are infected with these lethal viruses and 120-150 people are dying every day due to complications resulting from hepatitis in Pakistan.

“The global burden of Hepatitis C is 71 million and over 400 million are infected with Hepatitis B virus but in Pakistan it is estimated that around 18-20 million people are infected with these viruses. Unfortunately, only 20 percent of these people are aware that they are infected with lethal Hepatitis B and C viruses,” Dr Sajjad Jamil said.

Meanwhile, medics and experts at a seminar titled “Eliminate Hepatitis and Create Public Awareness” said that Hepatitis A and E spreads through contaminated drinking water/food and can be prevented by using boiled water, washing hands before cooking and eating and after using toilets.

The seminar was organised by the National Institute of Liver and GI Diseases (NILGID), constituent institute of Dow University of Health Sciences, to commemorate the World Hepatitis Day.

They said Hepatitis B and C can be transmitted via use of infected blood, reuse of shaving razors at barber shops, use of contaminated syringes during medical procedures or injection for drug use. It is essential to screen the blood properly for these viruses and observe proper sterilization measures during dental and surgical procedures. They also mentioned the unsafe injection practice in Pakistan by quacks and emphasized on avoiding unnecessary injection use. Hepatitis A and B are preventable by administrating vaccines.

Hepatitis has emerged as a major and considerable global health disease that is widely spreading and infecting around 300 million people worldwide. In Pakistan, there are approximately 7 million people who are infected with Hepatitis C. Only 1 million of such people have been diagnosed yet. The remaining 6 million of people are the missing millions. “If we don’t join hands to find these missing millions of people, Pakistan would be suffering with the threat of disease spreading at a higher rate and millions will continue to suffer while remaining undiagnosed,” a speaker said. Pakistan has the 2nd highest number of hepatitis patients in the world after China.