Much Ado about Hepatitis

In my little consulting room at the health centre today, I had 2 patients that had the same diagnosis and wanted the same thing. They had both tested HBsAg positive ( Hepatitis B) during a routine Pre-employment medical check up. And both of them wanted to be 'cured' of hepatitis so that they could go back to work.  The first individual came in because "he wanted to take drip to flush out the hepatitis". The second man had bought some injections and wanted to take the injections to treat the hepatitis. I was amused and angry at the same time. Amused by their request but angry at the person that conducted the tests without adequately educating them. Trust me, I took my time and informed them correctly about hepatitis. That's what I intend to do in this piece. Hepatitis is an infection of the liver. Literally, it means 'inflammation of the liver'. It has a thousand and one causes ; ranging from contacting viruses to Substance abuse like  drugs and alcohol all the way to autoimmune causes) . However, I shall be talking about the Viral hepatitides (plural of hepatitis). Viral Hepatitis is a pandemic, ie it is not confined to one region of the world; it has spread ( and is still spreading) all over the world. It is said that 20 to 25 percent of the African population is a carrier of either hepatitis B or C. That's 1 in every 4 African has this disease. Chai! Dearis God o. Several viruses cause hepatitis ( ranging from hepatogenic virus a, b, c,d, e; to cmv, ebv, yellow fever etc) . The frequently-screened ones are the hepatitis b and c. This is because they are the big boys that wreak a lot of havoc. Most people do not know how and when they became infected with this virus. Some of the known modes of transmission include through unprotected sex with an infected person, sharing of sharp objects, blood transfusion, and from a mother to her child, ( Yes, I know. Just the same ways HIV is transmitted right? I like to think that HIV, HBV and HCV are siblings). It is possible to be a carrier of the virus and not feel unwell. In fact, this is usually the case( as it was with both of my patients). However, some people have the symptoms which include jaundice ( yellowish discolouration of the white portion of the eyes), generalised feeling of unwell, headache, vomiting, diarrhoea, dark urine, abdominal discomfort just to name a few. Jaundice Several tests are needed to make a diagnosis and for proper management of hepatitis. Some of them include hepatitis screening ( HBsAg, HCV, ) liver function test, viral load, serological HBV tests, etc. ( Please let you doctor bother about these jargons. That's what we are trained to do) NB: There are vaccines available to prevent infection by some of these viruses e.g HBV; and these vaccines are a part of the National Immunisation Schedule for children in our dear dear Naija ( yippee!!!) Now, back to the matter! The only permanent treatment for hepatitis B and C known to man as at today is A Liver transplant. So please do not let some quacks trick you into flushing hepatitis out of your system. The good news however is that like their sibling (HIV), hepatitis can be successfully managed and an individual can live close to a normal life ( normal is a relative term; my normal could be your subnormal). So, the summary of my super story is this:  Please please and please, if you happen to know someone that knows someone that knows someone who tested positive to hepatitis, advise them to see a Qualified Physician in a reputable hospital. From my little years of experience, I have seen that there are too many shops called hospitals with carpenters posing as doctors. Hepatitis is a big deal, hence the fuss about it