Viral Hepatitis in India

Abstract

Viral hepatitis is a cause for major health care burden in India and is recently equated as a threat comparable to the “big three” communicable diseases – HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Tuberculosis. Hepatitis A virus and Hepatitis E virus are predominantly enterically transmitted pathogens and are responsible to cause both sporadic infections and epidemics of acute viral hepatitis. Hepatitis B virus and Hepatitis C virus are predominantly spread via parenteral route and are notorious to cause chronic hepatitis which can lead to grave complications including cirrhosis of liver and hepatocellular carcinoma.