Hepatitis hits Gulu, Kitgum

Sep 15, 2011

A more dangerous type of hepatitis has broken out in Kitgum and Gulu, Parliament has heard. Kitgum district Woman MP Beatrice Anywar said 12 cases of Hepatitis B had been confirmed at St. Joseph’s Hospital, Lacor.

By Joyce Namutebi and Mary Karugaba

A more dangerous type of hepatitis has broken out in Kitgum and Gulu, Parliament has heard. Kitgum district Woman MP Beatrice Anywar said 12 cases of Hepatitis B had been confirmed at St. Joseph’s Hospital, Lacor.

She said the patients were from Kitgum town council, Muchuni and Adelang. Hepatitis B is an infectious illness caused by the hepatitis B virus which affects the liver and causes an inflammation called hepatitis, according to information on Wikipedia.

About a quarter of the world’s population, over two billion people, have been infected with the hepatitis B virus. This includes 350 million chronic carriers of the virus.

Transmission of the hepatitis B is done through exposure to infectious blood or body fluids such as semen and vaginal fluids of infected people.

Other risk factors include working in a healthcare setting, blood transfusions, dialysis, acupuncture, tattooing and extended overseas travel. The infection is preventable by vaccination.

Infection at birth is a major route of infection in developing countries.

Anywar named Acholi, Karamoja and Lango as the regions suspected to be harbouring the virus.

She was concerned about the lack of reagents for testing and appealed to the Government to provide the reagents.

Anywar urged the Ministry of Health to provide Parliament with a statement on the spread of the disease and the steps being taken to fight it, a request to which health state minister Richard Nduhuura obliged.

Gulu Woman MP Betty Aol Ocan said the disease was also reported in Gulu where seven people had died.

Mbarara Municipality MP Medard Bitekyerezo said western Uganda was also affected.

“It means the whole country is under attack,” he said.

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