HEPATITIS
is a viral infection that
affects the liver.
There are three main types. Hepatitis A is caught through poor hygiene
and infected food and water. Hepatitis B and C are both easily transmitted
through blood (although B is also found in semen and saliva) and have
become problems for people who share injecting
equipment
when using drugs. They are easier to pass from one person to another than
HIV,
the virus that leads to AIDS. People may have no symptoms of hepatitis
when they first get infected, but can still infect others if they share
injecting equipment. They might become quite ill, possibly many years
later, and feel very tired and get flu-like symptoms, vomiting, fever
and jaundice. To reduce the risk of hepatitis, injecting drug users (IDUs)
are advised never to share injecting equipment with anyone else and to
use needle exchange schemes.
Figures on the rate of
hepatitis C varies. In England prevalence is estimated at 42% (2004 figs).
In Wales prevalence is estimated at 18% (2003/04 figs). The prevalence
in Scotland was estimated at 44% in 1999/2000 among IDU's who had undergone
a voluntary HIV test. Studies suggest it is rising among the general population
and, in particular, among prisoners, where equipment sharing is common.
(1.)
1. Source: Shooting Up Infections among injecting drug
users in the United Kingdom 2004, updated October 2005; Health Protection
Agency
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