MINISTER WARNING OVER INCREASING HEPATITIS CASES
Minister of health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children Ms Ummy Mwalimu has warned the public on the ferocity of hepatitis infection noting it is more than 10 times high than HIV/Aids and Tuberculosis.
Addressing journalists at a press conference in Dar es Salaam today, Ms Mwalimu noted that people should take every caution to prevent themselves from the disease as it kills a lot of people.
The briefing was part of activities arranged to observe the International hepatitis day, with theme “Eradicate Hepatitis Disease.”
She said though they don’t have exact hepatitis infection figures, various reports indicate that a lot of people are suffering from the disease in the country.
Not only that, she said, the disease also kills more people most of whom do not become aware until it was too late.
“Available statistics and research findings show that there has been infections of hepatitis B and C in the country. Last year, out of 200,000 people who donated blood at least 12,000 people were diagnosed with hepatitis B, which is 6 percent of all the blood donors,” she said.
She noted that 16 to 50 per cent of admitted patients and diagnosed with hepatitis B are those abusing drugs through injections.
“We are doing a research, it shows that those with hepatitis B can be cured however we don’t provide the medicines at public hospitals currently, only private hospitals are doing that,” she said noting however that currently there is a pilot study at Muhimbili National Hospitals (MNH) whereby diagnosis is conducted.
Ms Mwalimu said that so far they have managed to vaccine 97 percent of children against the disease.
“Since 2013 we have been giving hepatitis vaccine to all new born,” she said.
She urged blood banks to make a thorough testing of the donated blood in order to ensure that all infected blood is not used.
She said they had received complains from Singida that some people were given blood which was not tested thoroughly.
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