Health education should be included in students' curriculum: Dinesh Gundu Rao

Health education should be included in students' curriculum so as to protect them from deadly diseases, said Minister for Health & Family Welfare Dinesh Gundu Rao at the World Hepatitis Day observations on Friday.

In Karnataka, about 1 per cent of the population is affected by Hepatitis, Rao said.

Youth are affected by addictions and poor lifestyles and can be sensitised through health education in high school and graduate curricula. Awareness should be given on how viruses like Hepatitis spread, functions of the liver, healthy foods, and so on, he added.

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While there are five types of Hepatitis virus, Hepatitis B and C viruses can be fatal, with chronic infections likely to cause cancer, cirrhosis, etc. Hepatitis B patients need lifelong treatment, whereas Hepatitis C can be cured with a 12-week course of medication.

In line with the National Viral Hepatitis Control Program, the goal is to make Karnataka free of Hepatitis C by 2030, and to control Hepatitis B, Rao said.

According to the health department, 12 lakh pregnant women are screened for Hepatitis in the state annually. Rao said that Hepatitis B screening should be made mandatory for pregnant women.

In 2022-23, 2.4 lakh people in Karnataka were screened for Hepatitis B, of whom 6,682 tested positive. Of over 85,000 people screened for Hepatitis C, 868 turned positive. Much smaller numbers were screened for Hepatitis A and E, and 374 and 62 people, respectively, tested positive.

Currently, all 31 districts have treatment centres for Hepatitis B and C, stated a press release from the health department.

In addition to the two model treatment centres at the Institute of Gastroenterology Sciences and Organ Transplant, Bengaluru, and Gulbarga Institute of Medical Sciences, two more such centres will be started at Mysuru and Belagavi, the release said.