27th July, 2018
By Funmilola Olukomaiya
In order to raise awareness on the high prevalence of Viral Hepatitis and the impact it has worldwide, Isalu Hospitals, Lagos, on Friday 27th July 2018, as part of its CSR duties, organised a free screening and seminar for the public, to mark this year’s World Hepatitis Day with the theme: “Eliminate Hepatitis.”
The World Hepatitis Day is celebrated on the 28th of July, with the aim of bringing the world together, to inform them of this deadly disease which has eaten deeply into our society.
Mrs Bukola Olaleye, a public health educationist/manager, while speaking to PM News said Hepatitis is the inflammation of the liver and is mainly caused by viruses. She added that when the disease is left untreated, it can degenerate into the scaling of the liver which can lead to cancer of the liver or other liver related ailments.
Highlighting the types of Hepatitis there are, Olaleye said it can be grouped into Hepatitis virus A, B, C, D and E.
“Hepatitis B and C are very violent, and when I say violent, I mean very deadly while Hepatitis A, D and E can resolve, it is an acute illness, it will resolve in a very short while. Hepatitis B & C prolong to a chronic infection which can last beyond 10 years,” Olaleye explained.
She stressed further that, “Some people have been carriers of Hepatitis for more than 10 years and yet, they don’t know they are infected. This is because symptoms may not manifest immediately unlike malaria fever.”
Olaleye charged Nigerians to know their status and not wait till symptoms of the disease begin to manifest. She encouraged people to seize the opportunity of the free screening programmes that would be held to create awareness while celebrating World Hepatitis Day to know their status and how to guide against the deadly infection.
She stressed that “People should not be dying needlessly because the Hepatitis virus has cure, treatment and vaccines. Uninfected people should get themselves covered by getting vaccinated so as to prevent themselves from the virus, while people that have tested positive for the virus should begin treatment. Let people be aware of Hepatitis B, get tested, get vaccinated and if infected, begin early management before it gets to a chronic stage.”
Hepatitis B & C can be contacted through sexual intercourse and through any body fluid contact – except for tears from the eyes, while Hepatitis A, D & E can be contacted through unhygienic food and water.
Some Hepatitis symptoms may include fatigue, weight loss, severe yellowness of the eyes, palms and other body parts, loose stool, dark coloured urine etc.
In his charge to Nigerians, Mr Uche Akubueze, the keynote speaker at the event said,”Don’t get infected, avoid it by getting vaccinated.”
Akubueze in his analysis while speaking to PM News said the equivalent rate of HIV virus is 4%, while that of Hepatitis is between 9% to 25% or 30%. He said it became imperative for awareness to be made about Hepatitis and WHO earmarked a day to talk about it while seeking its eradication.
Akubueze charged the private sector and hospitals to do more in creating more awareness programme to the people, in their various facilities so more people will per time get more information about the disease.
Group Head, Business Strategy, Isalu Hospitals, Mr Ganiyu Oladipupo, who spoke to PM News said, “We are organising this CSR programme today to create awareness for our numerous clients and to the community at large. What is obvious is that people pay so much attention to HIV/AIDS virus, neglecting Hepatitis B and all the other categories of Hepatitis virus. But what is seen in healthcare, is that Hepatitis is deadlier than HIV, hence, the reason for the awareness created in the community. We started this programme about 5 years ago and it’s been recording a lot of turnouts and participation. In addition to this, we are always getting testimonies from people who after attending the seminar discovered their status and took appropriate measures to prevent the spread of the virus. In the society today, they are so many carriers of Hepatitis A, B, C, D or E virus, but the unfortunate thing is that a lot of people are not aware that they are carriers of the disease. The message to the community, public and International community and the World Health Organisation (WHO) especially is to create more awareness on the Hepatitis Virus the same way they raise awareness about the HIV virus because it is has proven to be deadlier and more dangerous than HIV.”