Healthcare Digital July 2022 | Page 13

It may surprise you to discover that hepatitis holds a higher death rate than HIV and malaria combined , killing two people every minute . The sickness causes damage to the liver and there are five different forms : Hepatitis A , B , C , D and E . While there ’ s a vaccine and effective treatment for Hepatitis B , as well as a cure for Hepatitis C , research continues .

TIMELINE

Hepatitis in children rises
Hepatitis eradication
With the global healthcare sector focused on COVID-19 , many healthcare initiatives have been forgotten or ignored . Babies are usually offered a hepatitis vaccine , but vaccine schedules have been delayed . Between April and May 2022 , there have been 650 cases of acute Hepatitis in children , from more than 30 countries .
14 years previously , the WHO Global Health Sector Strategy ( GHSS ) vowed that it would eliminate viral hepatitis as a public health problem , by 2030 . Preventative interventions include Hepatitis B vaccinations for babies , education on injection safety and widening treatment for patients . If successful , millions of lives will have been saved .
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