In the context of World Hepatitis Day, celebrated on Saturday, the Ministry of Health recalled that this condition is preventable and manageable, and that it continues to be a silent and neglected cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide.

Viral hepatitis is responsible for a huge health burden, mainly due to chronic infection by B and C variants, it said.

The Ministry explained in a statement that viral hepatitis is the second leading infectious cause of death globally, with about 1.3 million deaths worldwide, including more than 2,000 deaths in South Africa.

The text highlighted how people living with underlying conditions such as HIV are at increased risk due to co-infection, which further exacerbates the burden of liver disease.

South Africa is a signatory to the global hepatitis strategy of the World Health Organization (WHO), supported by other member states, which aims to reduce new hepatitis contagions by 90 percent and deaths by 65 percent between 2016 and 2030.

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