Switzerland: The World Health Organization’s 2024 Global Hepatitis Report reveals that viral hepatitis is now the second leading infectious cause of death worldwide, claiming 1.3 million lives annually. This places it on par with tuberculosis, another significant infectious killer.
The research, which was presented at the World Hepatitis Summit, emphasizes that testing and treatment coverage rates have stagnated despite improved diagnostic and treatment instruments and falling product costs. But if quick action is taken now, achieving the WHO elimination target by 2030 should still be possible.
The predicted number of deaths from viral hepatitis climbed from 1.1 million in 2019 to 1.3 million in 2022, according to new statistics from 187 countries. Hepatitis B was the cause of 83 percent of cases, and hepatitis C was the cause of 17 percent. 3,500 individuals worldwide pass away from hepatitis B and C diseases every day.
“This report paints a troubling picture: despite progress globally in preventing hepatitis infections, deaths are rising because far too few people with hepatitis are being diagnosed and treated,” said WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
“WHO is committed to supporting countries to use all the tools at their disposal – at access prices – to save lives and turn this trend around,” Dr. Ghebreyesus added.
According to updated WHO predictions, 50 million people will have hepatitis C and 254 million people will have hepatitis B in 2022. People aged 30-54 account for half of the burden of chronic hepatitis B and C infections, with children under the age of 18 accounting for 12 percent. Fifty-eight percent of cases involve men.
Although there has been a minor decline in incidence estimates from 2019, the overall rate of viral hepatitis is still quite high. 2.2 million new illnesses were reported in 2022 compared to 2.5 million in 2019. Among these are around one million new cases of hepatitis C and 1.2 million new cases of hepatitis B. Every day, more than 6000 new cases of viral hepatitis are reported.
The updated figures come from national prevalence surveys with improved data. Additionally, they show that the extension of hepatitis C treatment together with preventive measures like vaccination and safe injections have helped to lower the incidence.