(ANSA) - VENICE, 02 SEPT - The hepatitis C virus infection is much more widespread than is believed.
It is the conclusion of a survey carried out by the doctors of the Gastroenterology hospital at the Angelo di Mestre (Venice) with the collaboration of the Analysis and Microbiology Laboratory, validated and accepted by the international congress of Hepatology organized by the European Society for the study of liver.
The positivity rate, measured on 11 thousand patients hospitalized in the surgical area of the hospital, stood at 2.2%, against a prevalence, for the Venetian area, estimated at around 0.7-1%.
"The prevalence of this infection is therefore higher than expected - says the pèrimario Alessandro Caroli, who conceived and directed the scientific study -. The majority of the patients identified were not aware of the infection, which often proceeds deviously and without symptoms. Our proposal is therefore to activate screening for the hepatitis C virus in all hospitals at the time of admission, to identify carriers and then be able to treat and eliminate a substantial slice of this infection ".
The treatment of the patient with hepatitis C is simpler and more effective than in the past, thanks to the new antivirals with direct action, substantially free of side effects and highly effective, because in 99% of cases it involves the elimination of the virus.
The cost has greatly reduced and almost all patients can undergo the therapy, responding to the indication of the World Health Organization.
"Our study - continues Caroli - has shown that hospitalized patients represent a part of the population that can be easily investigated, with costs much lower than those of a screening carried out in the territory. It is enough to insert this simple test into the set of tests the patient is subjected to. upon admission. The results arrive within a day and it is then possible to quickly evaluate the patient and initiate therapy ".
For the general director of Ulss 3 Serenissima, Giuseppe Dal Ben, "the survey confirms the importance of the Mestre hospital not only for the excellence of its care, but also for the quality of its specialists, able to conceive and become promoters of scientific studies and good new practices ".
(HANDLE).