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Testing for Hepatitis B during pregnancy a must, say doctors
Kaushalya Devi, 56, (name changed) a Hepatitis B patient from Punjabi Bagh died due to advanced liver cirrhosis. Around 30 years ago, unknowingly, she had transmitted the virus to her son Viraj Kamal, 30, and daughter Shristi Awasthi, 28, during their birth. Awasthi, in turn, transmitted the infection to her newborn and now both the families are undergoing treatment for weak livers.
Kaushalya Devi, 56, (name changed) a Hepatitis B patient from Punjabi Bagh died due to advanced liver cirrhosis. Around 30 years ago, unknowingly, she had transmitted the virus to her son Viraj Kamal, 30, and daughter Shristi Awasthi, 28, during their birth. Awasthi, in turn, transmitted the infection to her newborn and now both the families are undergoing treatment for weak livers.
"Every year, 250,000 newborns are at the risk of acquiring HBV infection from their mothers due to lack of testing and preventive measures," said Dr Ashish Kumar, consultant, gastroenterology department at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, who gets at least five to six new cases of newborns or mothers with hepatitis B infection every week.
"Once a newborn is infected, he or she will silently carry the virus in the liver for years till it manifests in the form of liver cirrhosis or liver cancer during adulthood," he said.
Dr Kumar warned that once the disease reaches an advanced stage, most of these patients die if they do not receive liver transplantation. "Moreover, by this time, these patients have spread the virus to their next generation and the cycle continues," he said.
A research study authored by Dr Kumar, which was published in the Indian Journal of Gastroenterology, said that all pregnant women should be tested for Hepatitis B and those found positive should be treated to prevent the transmission of virus from mother to the baby. It also recommends that this testing should be made mandatory by law to check the spread of Hepatitis B infection.
Over 100,000 Indians die every year of liver disease caused by Hepatitis B.
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