ILBS, AAI launch initiative against hepatitis in the country

New Delhi: The city-based Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences in collaboration with the Airports Authority of India on Saturday launched a campaign to aware more people on hepatitis diseases and at the same time curb the discrimination attached to the viral disease.

Hosting an event here known as the Empathy conclave here, the duo organisations kicked of the campaign under which more and more people will be made aware about the symptoms of Hepatitis disease and at the same time ways to prevent it.

The event was attended by Union Minster of Health and Family Welfare Harsh Vardhan and Minister for Law Ravi Shankar Prasad among other senior prominent dignitaries.

In India, an estimated 4 crore people are suffering from hepatitis B (HBV) and almost 1.2 crore from hepatitis C (HCV).

With 1.5 lakh deaths annually and almost 60 million Indians affected with the dreaded disease, viral hepatitis continues to be a serious public health concern, the doctors said.

The WHO defines hepatitis as an inflammation of the liver. The condition can be self-limiting or can progress to fibrosis (scarring), cirrhosis or liver cancer.

There are five main hepatitis viruses, referred to as types A, B, C, D and E. These 5 types are of greatest concern because of the burden of illness and death they cause and the potential for outbreaks and epidemic spread.

In particular, types B and C lead to chronic disease in hundreds of millions of people and, together, are the most common cause of liver cirrhosis and cancer.

“There is a need for a law that ensures awareness of hepatitis disease in the country and also curb the discrimination faced by the patients,” ILBS Director S.K Sarin said at the event.

The ‘Empathy Conclave 2019’ brought together leading healthcare experts, law makers, government representatives, social influencers and prominent personalities from different strata of the society to discuss the effective ways of addressing the chronic disease.

Established in 2009, the ILBS is an autonomous institute under the Delhi government.