According to medical experts, Nigeria can eliminate hepatitis C by 2030 through safe injection practices and policies.
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Tanimola Akande, a professor of public health at the University of Ilorin, Kwara State, said Nigeria would make progress in the fight against hepatitis C if there were policies in place to ensure safe injection practices in the country.
He described hepatitis C as a dangerous blood-borne infection that affects and causes enlargement of the liver, saying Nigeria needed to step up screening and give effective antiviral treatment to those who test positive.
Akande said Nigeria must boast of quality health services and reduced disease burden as the World Health Organization said the country will eliminate hepatitis C by 2030.
He said, “To facilitate large-scale screening of the population, standard laboratories must be made available to all Nigerians. Of course, all of the above measures will require higher funding than currently available.”
Akande, who is a member of the Nigeria Expert Review Committee for the Polio Eradication Initiative and Routine Immunization, said that at the current pace of intervention, he does not believe Nigeria will be able to meet the 2030 target.
“However, it is difficult to predict when this will happen in Nigeria. “It all depends on the severity of the various measures to achieve this and the behavior of Nigerians in relation to the risk factors,” I’ve added it.
The World Health Organization says hepatitis C is an inflammation of the liver caused by the hepatitis C virus.
The virus can cause acute and chronic hepatitis, with severity ranging from mild illness to severe, lifelong disease, including cirrhosis and cancer.
A 2014 study sponsored by the World Health Organization estimated that in 2010, up to 1.7 million people were infected with hepatitis B virus, as many as 315,000 people were infected with hepatitis C virus, and as many as 33,800 people were infected with HIV through unsafe injections.
Dr Isaiah Abali, Consultant Orthopedic Surgeon, Abia State University Teaching Hospital, Aba, Abia State, said safe injection practices refer to measures taken to ensure safe injections for patients, healthcare providers and others.
“Safe injection practices include cleaning injection areas with disinfectants to prevent the spread of bloodborne pathogens to patients and health care workers.” I’ve added it.
I note that safe injection practices will help prevent hepatitis C since most people around the world contract the disease through unsafe injection practices.