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Hepatitis A: Amid the rapid rise in Hepatitis-A cases in the national capital Delhi in the last few weeks, doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) have asked people to avoid consuming contaminated food and contaminated water. Dr. Shalimar, Professor of Gastroenterology Department at AIIMS, said in an interview that the number of Hepatitis A cases in the hospital is increasing rapidly. Let us tell you about it in detail.
Hepatitis A and E together cause rapid liver damage
Dr Pramod Garg of AIIMS said that most of the patients are children and young people between 18 and 25 years of age. He said that hepatitis A and E are mainly spread through feces and contaminated water. These are self-limited infections. Meaning they do not spread from one person to another. Also, no specific anti-viral medicine is required to treat patients suffering from this disease.
Dr. Garg said that studies conducted by the department have shown that hepatitis A and E together are rapidly damaging the liver. It is responsible for 30 percent of liver cases.
What did WHO say on this
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 66 percent of global viral hepatitis B and C cases are concentrated in 10 countries, including India. Moreover, India ranks first among countries with the highest number of viral hepatitis cases and accounts for about 12 percent of the world's viral hepatitis cases. The WHO aims to reduce new chronic hepatitis infections by 90 percent and viral hepatitis deaths by 65 percent by 2030.
Speaking to reporters, Dr Garg further informed that the National Viral Hepatitis Control Programme in India is working towards this goal. He said that under this programme, all newborns are vaccinated against hepatitis B at birth and medicines for the treatment of hepatitis B and C viruses are given free of cost.