Hepatitis Claims 0.12 Million Lives In Pakistan: Dr. Nadeem Khan

HYDERABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Nov, 2016 ) : The Hepatitis is claiming the lives of around 0.12 million people every year in Pakistan and if the authorities concerned failed to initiate sincere efforts, the number of death could be raised further.

Talking to APP here on Monday, Eminent physician & cardiologist of Liaqat University of Medical and Health Sciences (LUMHS), jamshoro,Dr.Nadeem Anwar Khan said that awareness to masses about precautionary measures against disease could reduce the numbers of hepatitis patients in the country in general and in Sindh particular where the disease is spreading with rapid pace mainly in rural parts.

Hepatitis is treatable disease but due to carelessness of the people because of no awareness, it causing deaths in the country, Dr. Nadeem khan said and added that by adopting precautionary measures particularly avoiding the used shaving blades, razors, and make-up kits of beauty parlors, unsafe water, unhygienic food, blood transfusion and illegitimate relations.

Dr.Nadeem Anwar Khan further said that it was expected that three million patients in Pakistan were suffering from severe progressive hepatitis-C, which leads to liver failure. He said that there was also an alarmingly high incidence of liver cancer in Pakistan and it was expected to be the most common cancer in the country.

He said controlling of diseases was essential therefore; maximum awareness should be created among the people against these diseases. He urged the people to follow principle of "prevention is better than cure" for protecting themselves from diseases.

He said the government is spending billions of rupees on the treatment of hepatitis patients despite its limited resources. However, creating awareness among the masses can help eradicate the increasing number of patients for which media particularly electronic media can play an important role in this regard, he added.

Dr. Nadeem Anwar Khan expressed grave concern over quack doctors, who he said involved in causing Hepatitis with wrong diagnosis and prescription and termed it punishable offence on charge of playing with the lives of the people.

He said that it was because of wrong treatment that number of the cases of Hepatitis-D has been increased in the province. During the survey, the number of maximum cases of Hepatitis-B has been found in upper Sindh while the rate of Hepatitis-C is high in lower Sindh, he disclosed.

Dr. Nadeem Anwar Khan said that there are five main types of viral hepatitis A, B, C, D and E.

Symptoms of the liver problem can include jaundice, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever, he added.

Hepatitis E is common in Pakistan, China and other parts of the world. Talking about the global burden of the disease, he said as many as five billion people are infected only with hepatitis A, four billion infected with HBV, 200 million with HCV, 17 million with HDV and two billion with HEV.

Dr.Nadeem Anwar Khan said that hepatitis B and C are life-threatening but curable the citizens are required to be informed about the diseases in the country. He added that hepatitis largely remains unknown as a health threat in much of the world.

It is more prevalent particularly in the third world including Pakistan that makes it more alarming. A stringent method should be adopted to address the silent killer� of viral hepatitis, he said.

Viral hepatitis is also the leading cause of liver cancer. Liver cancer is the second biggest cancer killer and symptoms of viral hepatitis often go unnoticed. Therefore anyone who might think they may have been exposed should get tested, Dr.Nadeem Anwar Khan said.

Dr.Nadeem Anwar Khan said that lack of awareness among masses about hepatitis is a major cause of large scale rampancy of this disease and those who are sensitized about this disease to some extent generally do not take it seriously in the beginning.

They get worried only when this disease goes out of control and their liver stops functioning. Dr.Nadeem Khan said that in the past, medical science was aware about only two types of this ailment, Hepatitis A and B.

Now more dangerous types of this disease D, E and G have been recovered. Hepatitis B, C and D are more dangerous but they cannot harm without their combination with Hepatitis B. Dr. Nadeem Khan informed that hepatitis C can be shifted to other persons through blood infusion, used syringes, tattoos on body, drugs, sexual interaction with many men or women, dental diseases and use of infected operates during surgery.

He said that hepatitis do not spread by touching the patients. We should encourage such patients convincing them that timely treatment is very necessary to survive. He said that there was a need to educate media men, religious scholars, elected representatives and health workers about these problems.

Dr.Nadeem Anwar Khan underlined the need of launching mass awareness campaign at large scale so that the people could be aware of reason, which causing different kinds of hepatitis disease.