(Dubai) – To reduce the spread of viral hepatitis disease and promote greater understanding of hepatitis, July 28 is observed as World Hepatitis Day. On this day, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and its partners focus on the fact that although the burden of disease caused by viral hepatitis is growing, it remains largely ignored or unknown as a health threat. For 2013, the overall theme continues to be ‘This is hepatitis. Know it. Confront it’.
Viral hepatitis has emerged as a leading public health problem in the the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region, which includes Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
More than 75 per cent of cirrhosis and liver cancers in the region are attributable to hepatitis B or C virus infection.
