Prevalence of hepatitis B and C among patients admitted in respiratory medicine ward of a tertiary care hospital in Mullana, Ambala, Haryana, India

Background: Viral Hepatitis B and C have become a major public health problem. Hepatitis B affects approximately 30% of world population or about 2 billion people have serological evidence of either current or past infection. Hepatitis C virus infects approximately 3% of world population placing about 170 million people at risk of liver disease. In India, HBsAg prevalence rates among general population ranges from 0.1% to 11.7%, being 2% to 8% in most studies and seroprevalence for Hepatitis C ranges from 0.1% to 8% among general population. Methods: The study was conducted in the respiratory medicine Ward, MMIMSR in the month of August 2016. 200 patients were taken up for the study after clinical examination, necessary investigation and proper consent. Patients were tested for HBsAg antigen and HCV Tridot. Patients were put through a carefully designed questionnaire to look for possible cause of infection. Patients who came out to be positive for either Hepatitis B or C were counselled about further investigations and treatment options. Results: The prevalence rate for Hepatitis B came out to be 9% and for Hepatitis C was 5.5%. Hepatitis has become a major public health issue in India particularly in the rural areas. High prevalence rates among patients with respiratory diseases can be attributed to unsafe therapeutic injections and use of shared needles. Conclusions: There is a need to carry out larger studies to better elucidate the epidemiology of Hepatitis B and C and to identify high prevalence areas and simultaneously focus on improving public health measures to prevent disease transmission and decrease the burden of disease.