Manipur Gears Up to Prevent Hepatitis

Manipur aims to vaccinate 90 percent of the newborn with hepatitisvaccine by 2030 in order to prevent the disease, informed by state's leadinghepatologist Dr. N Suraj.

Interacting with the media persons in Imphal ahead of World HepatitisDay on July 28, Dr. Suraj said that at present, 50 percent of the newbornbabies are vaccinated with hepatitis. He said that the newborns should bevaccinated under the universal immunization programme which can help in theprevention of the disease, especially Hepatitis B.

Dr. Suraj said that Hepatitis B and C are silent killer as there areno specific symptoms adding that Hepatitis C can be cured completely throughproper treatment and care.

As per World Health Organization, South-East Asia Region office, around 325 million people are affected by Hepatitis B and C which is a major health challenges. The report also says that about 1.4 million deaths occur due to viral Hepatitis each year in the south-east Asia region out of which 81 percent are attributed to chronic complications of Hepatitis B and C.

Hepatitis B & C can be effectively managed but once theseinfections are caught, absolute cure is not assured. They must be managed withantiviral medicines, often necessitating life-long treatment. Time has come toencourage the general public to be aware of this highly contagious disease,Hepatologist said. Timely detection and initiation of antiviral medication isalso need of the hour.