CANBERRA, July 28 (Xinhua) -- Hepatitis Australia calls for more testing and awareness as new data reveals changing hepatitis demographics and gaps in diagnosis and treatment.
Nearly 300,000 Australians live with hepatitis B or C, and about 1,000 die each year from related complications, a situation Hepatitis Australia called "a serious concern" on Monday, the United Nations World Hepatitis Day.
"Most people have no symptoms of hepatitis B or hepatitis C until much later, when their liver might be seriously affected," said Hepatitis Australia President Joseph Doyle.
Lucy Clynes, CEO of Hepatitis Australia, the peak organization, highlighted that one-third of hepatitis B patients are unaware of their status, and many hepatitis C patients miss treatment as they are outside typical high-risk groups.
Although injecting drug use is a known risk, 84 percent of people with hepatitis C now have other sources of infection, such as unsafe tattooing, past blood transfusions, or unsafe medical procedures, highlighting the need for outreach beyond traditional high-risk groups, Clynes said.
Prisons are key transmission sites, with 40 percent of hepatitis C re-treatments in the Australian state of New South Wales occurring there, underscoring the need for expanded needle exchange programs, she said.
Nearly 220,000 Australians have hepatitis B, but under 25 percent get regular care. Many, especially those born overseas or before the 2000 vaccine introduction, go undiagnosed due to silent symptoms, and nearly 5 percent of babies born to infected mothers miss the vital birth-dose vaccine in the country, she added. ■
