Rising hepatitis C cases.

REPORTS that cases of hepatitis C are rising in several districts of Sindh are both alarming and further proof of lack of monitoring and regulation of the health sector on the part of the provincial government. In a recent survey conducted by the WHO and the Sindh health department across the province, cases of hepatitis C have risen from 5pc to 6.1pc, in contrast to hepatitis B infections which have registered a decrease. Almost 6,000 patients were screened for hepatitis B, C and HIV. At the moment, the provincial hepatitis programme caters to only 72,000 cases a year, when it needs to treat at least 200,000 annually.

Such a state of affairs paints a dismal picture of disease prevention and control. For a number of years, Pakistan has had the second-highest number of hepatitis C cases in the world. The national rate of hepatitis C prevalence hovers between 4pc and 8pc, with an estimated 150,000 new cases being reported every day. However, these figures are just the tip of the iceberg; as the survey suggests, the actual disease burden may be even higher than what the published numbers say. These alarming facts...