Australia Calls for Increased Hepatitis Testing as Infection Patterns Shift

(MENAFN) Hepatitis Australia is urging increased testing and public education as fresh data exposes evolving hepatitis trends and significant shortfalls in diagnosis and treatment efforts.

Close to 300,000 Australians are currently living with hepatitis B or C, with roughly 1,000 fatalities each year linked to these infections. Hepatitis Australia described this toll as "a serious concern" on Monday, coinciding with the United Nations World Hepatitis Day.

"Most people have no symptoms of hepatitis B or hepatitis C until much later, when their liver might be seriously affected," said Hepatitis Australia President Joseph Doyle.

Lucy Clynes, CEO of Hepatitis Australia, the national peak body, pointed out that about one-third of individuals with hepatitis B remain unaware of their infection. Additionally, a significant number of hepatitis C patients do not receive treatment because they fall outside conventional high-risk categories.

While injecting drug use remains a recognized risk factor, 84 percent of hepatitis C cases now originate from other sources, such as unsafe tattooing, previous blood transfusions, or unsafe medical procedures. This shift underscores the necessity of expanding outreach efforts beyond traditional at-risk populations, Clynes emphasized.

Correctional facilities represent a major hotspot for transmission; in New South Wales, 40 percent of hepatitis C retreatments take place in prisons, highlighting the urgent need to broaden needle exchange programs, she noted.

Approximately 220,000 Australians live with hepatitis B, but fewer than one in four receive ongoing medical care. Many affected individuals—particularly those born overseas or before the introduction of the vaccine in 2000—remain undiagnosed due to the infection’s often silent nature. Furthermore, nearly 5 percent of newborns to infected mothers miss the critical birth-dose vaccination, Clynes added.

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