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(MENAFN – The Peninsula) The Peninsula
The World Health Organization (WHO) has ranked Qatar among the top ten countries in the world in the process of eliminating the hepatitis C virus, said Dr. Muna Al Maslamani (photo) , medical director of Hamad Medical. Center for Communicable Diseases (CDC) of the Corporation (HMC).
Dr. Al Maslamani stated that there is already a standardized hepatitis treatment program in the Division of Gastroenterology of HMC and that it would be a remarkable feat to be among the first countries in the world to eliminate hepatitis C.
"We launched Qatar's national strategy for the fight against hepatitis 2018-2022, following the launch of a plan in December 2014, which was a collaboration between HMC and the Ministry of Public Health. . This plan was placed under the supervision of the WHO in January 2018 and, according to the recent publication of the World Health Corps, Qatar is one of the top ten countries in the process of eradicating the disease. Hepatitis C virus, said Dr. Al Maslamani.
According to WHO, the main countries that have eradicated the hepatitis C virus are Germany, Australia, Brazil, Germany, Iceland, Japan, the Netherlands, Qatar, Italy, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Switzerland and Mongolia.
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver. The disease may be self-limiting or may progress to fibrosis (scarring), cirrhosis or liver cancer. Hepatitis viruses are the most common cause of hepatitis, but other infections, toxic substances and autoimmune diseases can also cause hepatitis.
There are five major hepatitis viruses, called types A, B, C, D, and E. These five types are the most worrisome because of the burden of disease and death that they cause and the potential outbreaks and spread of the epidemic. In particular, types B and C cause chronic diseases in hundreds of millions of people and together they constitute the most common cause of cirrhosis and liver cancer.
Dr. Al Maslamani said that according to strategic data from the Ministry of Public Health, more than 23,000 people in the country are living with viral hepatitis B, of which 1,445 are currently undergoing treatment, in line with international guidelines and best practices. She says the others receive regular follow-up care. Dr. Al Maslamani added that more than 4,200 people in the country had been diagnosed with viral hepatitis C, of which more than 1,700 were undergoing treatment.
In response to the recent outbreak of hepatitis A virus in the United States, Dr. Al Maslamani says that there has been no recent outbreak in Qatar, which 39, in part attributed to the strict application of the recommended routine hepatitis A vaccine for all children in the country. .
Dr Moutaz Derbala, senior consultant in the Division of Gastroenterologists for Health, responsible for the hepatitis care program, recalled that Qatar had put in place a sectoral response to viral hepatitis epidemics.
"The State of Qatar is on track to fight hepatitis, and this strategic framework is a continuation of an already developed plan of action to combat the spread of the disease. This strategic framework aligns the national response to hepatitis in Qatar with global and regional strategies to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Dr. Derbala said.
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