Pakistan currently has the largest number of hepatitis C patients in the world.
According to informants, and according to official statistics, about 10 million patients in Pakistan are infected with this virus, and contaminated needles and unsanitary medical services are the main reason why these people contract this disease.
According to the US Center for Disease Analysis (CDA), approximately half a million new infections will be identified in Pakistan between 2015 and 2021.
Pakistani health officials have announced the results of a two-year study conducted jointly by the American Center for Disease Analysis and the Pakistani Ministry of Health.
The epidemiologist said: Pakistan now has the largest number of hepatitis C patients in the world, overtaking China, India and Nigeria.
This blood-borne disease, which can cause severe liver complications if left untreated, is expected to affect the public health system in Pakistan.
Health experts say reuse of needles and syringes, unchecked blood transfusions, use of razors by hairdressers and unsanitary surgical instruments at dentists are the main causes of the spread of hepatitis C in Pakistan.
The country has one of the highest IV rates per capita in the world.
“Unfortunately, we are weak in infection prevention,” said a Pakistani health official. Also, a pregnant woman is not vaccinated against hepatitis B, as a result of which this virus is transmitted from mother to child.
According to Yahoo News, recent floods in Pakistan have exacerbated the situation by damaging nearly 900 health facilities across the country and exposing 75,000 pregnant women to infection.
Hepatitis C usually has no symptoms, but chronic infection can cause scarring of the liver and lead to cirrhosis after a few years. In some cases, people with cirrhosis develop liver failure, liver cancer, or severe swelling of the blood vessels in the esophagus and stomach, which can lead to bleeding to death.
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