| Awareness needed to combat Hepatitis B |
KUWAIT: Hepatologists in Kuwait are developing a comprehensive treatment algorithm for chronic Hepatitis B, one that is compatible with international standards since the region suffers from a lack of awareness and understanding of this liver disease, according to Dr Fuad Al-Ali, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Kuwait University. Al-Ali held a press conference yesterday at Court Yard Marriott hotel where he discussed the Hepatitis B virus in Kuwait and offered an elaborate analysis of the medical and so
cial consequences of the disease.
HBV is moderately prevalent in the Middle East with HBV infection ranging from two to eight percentage. More specifically, in Kuwait, the prevalence rate is around two to five percentage.
Chronic HBV affects the liver and in the long run, it may cause liver damage, cancer or death. The acute illness can be detected through loss of appetite, diarrhea, yellowness in eyes and pain in muscles and joints.
It's difficult for this disease to be discovered and treated because of the weak medical awareness surrounding it," Al-Ali said. He also added that patients, most of the time, are unaware of the disease because complications only occur years after. Another tricky aspect of the disease is the social stigma surrounding it.
This prevents people from even recognizing that they have the disease due to how people would react to it in terms of dealing with the carriers," which in turn can make them isolated and neglected by society," Al-Ali said.
These are misconceptions of how people get the disease and during the conference, Al-Ali tried to explain how the disease is transmitted among people. "Through sexual intercourse...and from a mother to her unborn child" and through blood transfusion. In Western countries, however, there are other ways that the virus spreads including through the multiple use of a drug needle and homosexuality, he said.
Vaccination is available and people should take advantage of that. "In 1991, it became obligatory for children to be vaccinated no less than 12 hours after birth," Al-Ali said. Other than vaccinations, prevention can be established through avoiding suspicious sexual intercourse, learn the international standards of HBV and routine check-ups for pregnant women.
In Kuwait, medical tools are monitored and regularly sterilized so the facilities cannot carry the virus," Al-Ali said. Also, treatment is available and there are around six treatment options patients could pursue, "but again, discovering the disease earlier, prevents liver cancer and other permanent damage to the liver".
Al-Ali explains that every patient is a different case and only a professional specialized doctor could prescribe medication to their patients.
The virus could be inactive. "Those inactive carriers could have a good future and the occurrence of complications are minimal," added Al-Ali. If somebody has any illness that affects the immune system and weakens it, they should be given HBV tests.
We need this information to be given out to policy makers, doctors and the people...because I believe 20 to 30 years from now, we wouldn't even hear about the HBV because we have what would make it like chickenpox," Al-Ali said. - Kuwait Times
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| Posted on:
26/01/2009 |
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