/24-7PressRelease/ - DOYLESTOWN, PA, September 21, 2008 - The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today published new recommendations to increase routine testing in the United States for chronic hepatitis B, a major cause of liver disease and liver cancer. The recommendations, published today in CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) Recommendations & Reports, recommend testing all individuals born in Asia - a population disproportionately affected by chronic hepatitis B virus infection.
"Hepatitis B virus is a highly infectious disease that is affecting the health of our Asian and Pacific Islander (API) community," said Dr. Timothy Block, President of the Hepatitis B Foundation. "We are committed to preventing the spread of this virus and support the new CDC recommendations for testing."
Nearly one in 12 Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders living in the United States is chronically infected with the hepatitis B virus, and one-third or more are unaware of their infection.
These new recommendations are critical to identifying people who are living with the disease without the benefits of medical attention. According to the CDC, chronic hepatitis B virus infection affects the lives of as many as 1.4 million Americans, many of whom do not even know they are infected.
The CDC now recommends routine testing for individuals born in Asia, Africa, and other geographic regions with a 2 percent or higher prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus infection, and for US-born individuals whose parents were born in regions with 8 percent or higher prevalence. Expanded testing is essential since the rate of liver cancer deaths and chronic hepatitis B in the United States remains high among these individuals.
CDC also recommends testing of men who have sexual contact with other men and injection drug users, as well as all pregnant women, infants born to infected mothers, household contacts and sex partners of infected individuals, and people with HIV.
The report also advises that persons with chronic hepatitis B virus infections be referred to specialists for ongoing monitoring and medical care. Several new therapies are available, which can delay or reverse the effects of liver disease. In addition, the recommendations urge healthcare professionals to educate their patients about hepatitis B, begin lifelong monitoring for progression of liver disease, and ensure protection of close contacts of infected persons.
About The Hepatitis B Foundation
The Hepatitis B Foundation is the only national nonprofit organization solely dedicated to finding a cure and improving the quality of life for those affected with hepatitis B worldwide through research, education and patient advocacy. The Foundation is located in the Pennsylvania Biotechnology Center, which it created to accelerate its research mission. For more information, please visit http://www.hepb.org or call (215) 489-4900.
For more information about chronic hepatitis B virus infection visit: http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HBV/TestingChronic or http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/.
For the September 19, 2008 MMWR visit: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr
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