New plan to boost fight against hepatitis

China aims to strengthen newborn vaccination against hepatitis A and B and reduce the prevalence of hepatitis B surface antigen in children under 5 to 0.2 percent by 2030, compared to around 0.3 percent at present, according to an action plan released recently.

Meanwhile, the diagnosis rate for chronic hepatitis B patients and the antiviral treatment rate for newly reported patients will both reach at least 80 percent by 2030, said the document released by the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration and eight other government departments.

China had about 120 million carriers of hepatitis B — an infection linked to a higher risk of chronic liver disease and liver cancer — in the early 1990s.

Since 1992, the nation has been administering hepatitis B vaccines to newborns. The vaccine was included in the national immunization program in 2002, followed by the addition of the hepatitis A vaccine in 2008.

Health authorities recently said that mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B is on track for elimination, while the spread of hepatitis B and C through blood transfusion has been essentially blocked.

The plan is aimed at further bolstering the fight against the infectious disease, especially the most common type of hepatitis B that still affects about 75 million people nationwide.

By 2030, the full-course vaccination coverage rate for hepatitis A and B vaccines among children should remain consistently at or above 95 percent and the mother-to-child transmission rate of hepatitis B should be reduced to 1 percent or below.

The plan stipulates that nursery care centers, kindergartens and schools should strictly inspect vaccination certifications of children upon enrollment.

For adults, efforts will be made to promote immunization against hepatitis B for high-risk groups, such as frequent recipients of blood products, individuals with weakened immunity, family members and sexual partners of infected people.

To achieve elimination of mother-to-child transmission, healthcare institutions are required to provide hepatitis B testing for all pregnant women as early as possible and offer standardized antiviral treatment to infected individuals.

Newborns of infected mothers should receive the hepatitis B vaccines and immunoglobulin injections within 12 hours after birth. Regular follow-up examinations should be conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions.

The action plan also called for the use of information technologies and encouraging voluntary testing to detect undiagnosed cases. "Those testing positive will be offered services to confirm diagnosis and antiviral treatment. Patients who cannot be managed locally should be transferred to other venues promptly," it said.

To improve access to standardized treatment, the document requires healthcare institutions to carry out pretreatment testing and treatment eligibility assessment for infected people and mobilize them to undergo standardized antiviral therapy.

"Efforts should be made to explore internet-based diagnosis and treatment models, along with medicine delivery services, as well as offer health education and counseling to patients and their family members so as to enhance treatment compliance and outcomes," it said.

wangxiaoyu@chinadaily.com.cn