Web Desk: The World Hepatitis Day is being observed today with the theme ‘It’s Time for Action.’
The theme highlights the urgent need for swift and decisive measures to tackle hepatitis on a global scale.
This call to action is reinforced by the alarming statistic that in every thirty seconds someone dies of a hepatitis-related illness globally.
According to a World Health Organisation (WHO) report, “About 1.3 million people died of viral hepatitis in 2022, similar to the number of deaths caused by tuberculosis. Viral hepatitis and tuberculosis were the second leading causes of death among infectious diseases in 2022, after COVID-19.” There are five strains of the virus classified as A, B, C, D, and E. Among these, Hepatitis B and C are
the most common with almost 2.2 million new infections each year worldwide.
World Hepatitis Day 2024 History
History The World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA) organised the first World Hepatitis Day in 2008. WHA and WHO together initiated this day and WHA chose July 28 to mark the birthday of Dr Baruch Samuel Blumberg, an American physician who traced the hepatitis B virus and created a vaccine for it.
World Hepatitis Day 2024: Theme
This year’s theme for World Hepatitis Day is ‘It’s time for action.’ This theme revolves around the need to accelerate hepatitis-related diagnosis and treatment.
Every 30 seconds, a person dies due to hepatitis-related illness and, hence, there is a need for action to save lives and improve health.
If the world aims to achieve the WHO elimination goal by 2030, then swift action is required to achieve it.
