British Overseas Travellers Warned About High Risk Of Hepatitis, Association Of British Hujjaj (Pilgrims) UK

Main Category: Preventive Medicine
Also Included In: Liver Disease / Hepatitis
Article Date: 21 Feb 2008 - 1:00 PDT

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A team of senior doctors from the Association of British Hujjaj (Pilgrims) UK, a national charitable organisation, have issued a strong warning to British overseas travellers to South Asian countries and other developing countries that they must take extra care to protect themselves from infectious diseases like Hepatitis.

The senior doctors state that there is a growing problem with widespread ignorance amongst the overseas travellers of the necessity of taking Health & Safety precautions before and during their visit. A substantial number of travellers do not take the required vaccinations. They are risking their health by not taking the proper preventative measures against the potentially life-threatening diseases.

"Around 600 million people in the world are infected with Hepatitis B and C: 350-400 million people are infected with Hepatitis B and 180 million infected with Hepatitis C. Only Hepatitis B virus is 100 times more infectious than HIV and over 1 million deaths are directly related to hepatitis-B infection, which is the ninth leading cause of death in the world", said the doctors. Hepatitis causes headaches, shivering, fever, jaundice, loss of appetite, diarrhoea, vomiting, gastrointestinal illnesses, and other acute illnesses.

In India, more than 45 million people are reported currently infected with the Hepatitis B virus while more than 15 million are infected with Hepatitis C. In Pakistan, almost 15 million people suffer from Hepatitis. Similarly, over 20 million people in Bangladesh suffer from this disease.

The senior doctors specifically warned those who plan to travel to Saudi Arabia, India, Pakistan, Bhutan and Bangladesh to take appropriate precautions to minimise their exposure to health hazards by ensuring that they do not share razors, manicure tools, or other items that may be a contaminated with blood, do not allow themselves to be pierced with non-sterilised equipment and make sure that the food and drinking water are clean and safe.

"Travellers must visit their GP, practice nurse or travel clinic up to eight weeks before travelling to get the best advice on protection", the doctors said in a joint statement.

Association of British Hujjaj (Pilgrims) UK