Mohammad Shoaib Khan, Abdul Majeed, Shafi Ullah, Mohammad Sajjad.
Hepatitis B and C: An alarming situation in Southern part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
Ann Pak Inst Med Sci Jan ;7(4):228-32.

Objective: HBV and HCV are common health problems throughout the world especially in developing countries including Pakistan. Both the viruses have almost the same mode of transmission. The objective of this study was to determine the frequency of HBV & HCV and its Risk factors in indoor patients of DHQTH Bannu. Place & Duration: This study was conducted in medical units of DHQTH Bannu from January, 2004 till December, 2008. Study Design: Cross sectional Descriptive Study. Sampling Technique: Purposive sampling Materials and Methods: A total of 25944 patients comprising both the sexes and above the age of 15 years, who were admitted in medical units, were screened for HBV & HCV by rapid method and confirmed by ELISA technique. Results: Out of total 25944 patients, male (13953) corresponds to 53.7 % and female (11991) makes 46.3 %, were tested for HCV & HBV. Out of which, 1352 patients were found positive (5.2 %) either for HBV or HCV but none was positive for both. HBV was present in 502 patients (1.93 %) and HCV in 850 patients (3.27 %). Out of 1352 patients, 905 (67.0 %) were male and 447, (33.0 %) were female. Average age ranged between 35-55 years. The main risk factors included were usage of unsterilized syringes, drips at villages, shaving in barber shops at villages/rural commodities and dental procedures. Of 1352 positive cases, 44.5 % of the cases were farmers, 26.2 % were house wives, 7.9% were drivers, 14.5 % were government servants and 6.7 % constituted miscellaneous group. 72% of positive cases have no proper knowledge about HBV and HCV. Conclusion: HCV is more prevalent than HBV in our setup and needs to be properly addressed. The usage of unsterilized needles/ shaving at barber shops, dental procedures and surgery by unsterilized instruments were the major risk factors. All the possible measures should be explored to prevent the transmission and sequele of these two common viral infections.

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