Dr. Howard Koh, Assistant Secretary for Health at the Department of Health and Human Services, sheds light on the disproportionate burden of viral hepatitis among the Asian American and Pacific Islander population in the United States. As May is Hepatitis Awareness Month, Dr. Koh discusses the commitment to address this disparity, and the threat of hepatitis, nationwide.
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Baby boomers – those born between 1945 and 1965 – are strongly encouraged to get tested for Hepatitis C. The month of May is Hepatitis Awareness Month and the CDC indicates this target population is most at-risk of carrying the disease.
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An Advisory Committee at the CDC now suggests that patients diagnosed with diabetes be vaccinated against the hepatitis B virus soon after the diagnosis is made.
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The Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and public health partners across the nation will observe Hepatitis Awareness Month this May. Awareness Month serves as an opportunity to learn more about viral hepatitis risks, tests and treatment.
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Dr. John Ward, Director of the CDC's Division of Viral Hepatitis, was interviewed by AARP's Inside E Street about the impact of hepatitis C on baby boomers. In the U.S., 75% of people with hepatitis C were born between 1945-1965. This interview also includes video of an interview with Dr. Ward discussing hepatitis C in America.
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Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is most prevalent among adults born from 1945 through 1965, and most of them are currently undiagnosed. Whether screening based on birth cohort is more cost-effective than screening based on other risk factors is unknown. This cost-effectiveness analysis from published evidence plus census and Medicare data estimated that 1-time screening for HCV of persons born between 1945 to 1963 followed by treatment with currently available therapies was cost-effective. A change from solely risk-based screening for HCV to 1-time screening of this birth cohort should be considered.
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Hepatitis B and C virus infections result in significant morbidity and mortality but are often unrecognized and thus go untreated. This study used death certificate data to examine temporal trends in deaths from hepatitis B and C virus and HIV infections in the United States. Annual deaths from hepatitis C now exceed those from HIV, and deaths from hepatitis B and C are concentrated among middle-aged persons. Hepatitis B and C are critical and relatively unrecognized public health issues in the United States that have reached epidemic proportions.
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A recent study finds that there is a significantly greater prevalence of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) in those diagnosed with diabetes.
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Tattoos and piercings are increasing, especially among youths, but the risk of hepatitis C virus (HCV)
infection from these practices has not been adequately assessed and there are conflicting findings in the literature. The authors evaluated the risk of HCV infection from tattooing and piercing using the Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE) guidelines.
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