Early approach is one of the keys to treating liver diseases
UCM Summer Courses
Spain is located as one of the first countries in the world to achieve the elimination of the hepatitis C virus (HCV)in line with the targets set by the World Health Organization (WHO) for 2030. However, there is still a way to go to achieve this, as the estimated number of people with undetected active hepatitis C at the state level is 15,856, while the number of people with active hepatitis C is 54,676, of which a total of approximately 70,532 people will need to be diagnosed and/or treated in Spain.
That’s why it’s important to have initiatives to identify patients with latent infection due to viral hepatitis, supported by the desire of health workers and institutions to improve diagnostics and achieve set goals.
progress The progress towards hepatitis C elimination over the past decade, thanks to treatment with direct-acting antivirals (DAAs), single-step diagnostics, linkage to care for people diagnosed many years ago, and a focus on high-risk populations, means that the 2030 elimination targets are considered close to being achieved.
Along with these achievements, it is necessary invest in improving information systems which allow continuous monitoring of progress towards HCV elimination, adapting and improving intervention strategies as necessary.
The implementation of these improvements will allow Spain make significant progress in eliminating hepatitis Cmeeting the criteria set by ECDC and WHO and improving public health at national level. To this end, the work The National Epidemiology Center of the Carlos III Institute of Health, which carries out epidemiological surveillance of hepatitis B and C.Just as they are currently reviewing epidemiological surveillance protocols in conjunction with the Autonomous Communities and the Ministry of Health to strengthen the notification system and improve information on viral hepatitis at the national level.
An aspect on which various experts have gathered within the framework Celebration of the summer courses of the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, during Day 6 Public health issues associated with liver diseasewith the support of Gilead Sciences.
As explained Director of the Complutense Summer Courses Natalia Abuin Wences“We have come together with a common goal: to contribute to improving the health and well-being of our communities. It is important to note that more than 300 million people worldwide live with chronic hepatitis B or C infections, which makes viral hepatitis many times more common than HIV“For this reason, we are grateful to Gilead, which today has developed innovative drugs for the treatment of viral hepatitis.”
“During the day we discussed important questions How Hepatitis C eliminationcare in emergency situations and vulnerable groups of the population, as well as Problems and achievements in the treatment of delta hepatitis and cholangitis“All this with the aim of informing and inspiring concrete, collective actions that bring us closer to a healthier and more just future,” added Abuin Wences.
As part of the conference project Call to Action to Eliminate Hepatitis Cwho jointly launched Spanish Association for the Study of the Liver (AEEH) and Gilead and which was just presented as part of the summer courses of the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, during VI Conference “Problems of Public Health in Liver Diseases”with the support of Gilead Sciences.
This AEEH and Gilead’s Integrated Actionswhich, in collaboration with a multidisciplinary group of experts representing the main scientific societies involved in the issue and several autonomous communities, has developed a communication and awareness-raising plan on hepatitis C and the reality of this disease today. Recruitment recommendations that can help create the social and political momentum needed to eliminate hepatitis C in our country.updating the actions initiated in 2015 to take into account the current context and needs.
Have initiatives to identify patients with latent viral hepatitis infection, with the support of medical workers and institutionsis the key to improving diagnostics and achieving goals. According to Luis Armenteros, Director of Traditional Products, Gilead Spain and Portugal“In the current context of the epidemic in Spain, it is necessary to implement new detection strategies like this one, which will allow us to identify cases of undetected infection and thus be able to treat these patients. “For this reason, we must highlight the enormous merit and effort of all health professionals, with the support of scientific societies and patient associations, as fundamental elements in the implementation of these successful initiatives.”
Education
In addition, Luis Armenteros wanted to emphasize “the high level of education offered by the Complutense University of Madrid these days, which this year celebrate their thirty-seventh edition. For us, this annual event has become a benchmark event for interdisciplinary dialogue aimed at solving current and future challenges to improve the lives of patients suffering from liver diseases.
The main objectives of this set of recommendations focus on identifying the needs and barriers that exist in Spain for achieve the elimination of hepatitis C in various medical institutionsto propose a set of measures to respond to these obstacles, raise awareness and mobilize all the agents involved to implement new strategies that will help to eliminate the epidemic in Spain as soon as possible. To this end, various proposals are described, such as promoting strategies for detecting latent infection, decentralizing diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of hepatitis C or launching information campaigns and actions.
According to him Dr. Manuel Romero, President of AEEH and Head of the Digestive Service at the Virgen del Rocío University Hospital in Seville“This new action complements all the work that has been done to eliminate hepatitis C. The idea now is to follow the example of the National Liver Health Plan, which was recently presented and which sets 6 jobs, one of them is viral hepatitis, with Elimination of hepatitis C as one of the main goals. And this Call to action wants an update on how the elimination of hepatitis C will be achieved in 2024 and how to give momentum to this process. “This is a great complement to all the work done in recent years and will have a very beneficial impact on Spanish society in general and on people with hepatitis C who do not know about it in particular.”
“We will try to raise awareness and sensitize the population about hepatitis C. To convey that every detected patient is a cured patient and therefore avoids complications and problems in life. But we need to improve the approach to such detection, and for this we must strengthen the verification, verification based on artificial intelligence and algorithms that allow us to identify what the target audience“The population that we have to work on to solve this problem,” adds Dr. Romero.
In accordance with Course Director, Dr. José Luis Calleja, Head of the Digestive Service at the Puerta de Hierro University Hospital in Majadahonda, Madrid“This course brings together doctors, industry professionals, patients, political representatives and members of the autonomous community. An event that has evolved into an interdisciplinary forum and continues to be a great success after several years of being held.
“We continue to celebrate it to remember that Liver disease is the second cause of lost years in Europe“The fundamental characteristic of these diseases is that they are usually silent and when we diagnose them, they are at a late stage and therefore the ability to act is low. We are often late when the chances of cure are low, although most liver diseases are preventable. This leads to high mortality associated with various pathologies. For this reason, European and world societies are working hard to prevent it,” added Dr. Calleja.
Spain has become an international benchmark for the elimination of hepatitis C, with more than 167,000 patients treated here. today2, partly due to the implementation of the Strategic Plan for the Elimination of Hepatitis C in Social Network Countries (PEAHC). WHO has described this plan as a success, as it has made important strides towards eliminating hepatitis C as a public health problem3. However, it is believed that there are still undiagnosed people who, in many cases, do not even know that they have active virus.
Other liver diseases
In addition, he addressed the problem of chronic hepatitis Dthe most serious hepatitis. A defective virus that cannot reproduce without the help of another virus, so all these patients always also have hepatitis B (HBV). It is a rare disease that affects populations with low levels of hepatitis B vaccination, who are often young and largely belong to vulnerable groups.
Many of them have coinfection with HCV (16%) or HIV (10%), or were or continue to be injection drug users. It is associated with more rapid progression of liver fibrosis and cirrhosis, and an increased risk of liver cancer and death. Currently, many patients with VGB are undiagnosed, partly due to limited knowledge of the disease, resulting in fewer diagnostic tests to detect the disease.
Another liver disease that was treated that day was cholangitisinfection of the liver and common bile ducts associated with obstruction of the common bile duct. Cholangitis is a potentially fatal form of intra-abdominal sepsis, although it may appear harmless in its early stages.
(SERVIMEDIA)