WHO prioritizes the fight against hepatitis and tuberculosis

On May 19, the 67th session of the World Health Organization (WHO) General Assembly opened in Geneva, Switzerland.

Patients at the tuberculosis treatment area at the central hospital in Herat city, Afghanistan on April 9. Source: AFP/TTXVN

At the meeting, which is expected to last until May 24, delegates will focus on discussing 14 main topics, but preventing tuberculosis and hepatitis are top priorities.

According to the plan, at the meeting, WHO will present a draft of the Global Strategy and targets in the field of tuberculosis prevention and treatment for the period after 2015.

According to WHO data, every year there are 8.6 to 9 million people infected with pulmonary tuberculosis worldwide, of which nearly 3 million patients are not treated, along with about 500,000 patients with drug-resistant tuberculosis.

Tuberculosis also kills nearly 1.4 million people worldwide, making it the second leading cause of death after HIV/AIDS.

The main objective of the strategy is to halt the global tuberculosis epidemic, reducing the mortality rate from the disease by 75% by 2025 and 95% by 2035, while reducing the incidence rate by 50% and 90%, respectively.

Regarding hepatitis, Egypt is currently the country with the highest rate of liver disease in the world.

According to WHO data, five different types of hepatitis viruses kill nearly 1.4 million people worldwide each year, of which nearly 800,000 die from hepatitis B virus infection and nearly 500,000 from hepatitis C virus infection.

Experts estimate that 240 million people worldwide are chronically infected with hepatitis B virus and 150 million people are chronically infected with hepatitis C virus.

WHO confirms that patients with chronic hepatitis virus infection are at high risk, but the disease is not yet fully recognized as a global public health problem.

According to Vietnam+