| New tests for ‘silent killer’ urged |
 |
 |
 |
|
Wednesday, 20 January 2010 21:57
|
|
Bid to find 25,000 Scots with undiagnosed Hepatitis C HEALTH boards are being urged to offer tests at community pharmacies to find out how many Scots may be infected with a disease often know as the “silent killer”. It is estimated there are at least 25,000 people in Scotland with undiagnosed hepatitis C. If left untreated it can cause cirrhosis, liver cancer and death. The Hepatitis C Trust wants NHS boards to pilot the tests in pharmacies following a three-month project in England. Nineteen pharmacies there offered free, dried blood spot tests to people at risk of contracting the virus and about 15% tested positive — compared with the 2.45% who tested positive in tests carried out in Scotland in 2008.Hepatitis C Trust chief executive Charles Gore said a greater effort was needed to find out who had the disease in Scotland so they could be offered treatment. “We need to find the 25,000 people in Scotland who are still undiagnosed. “Offering tests in pharmacies could help find patients who would otherwise not get tested, and they are the ones at real risk of early death. “If they haven’t been tested by their GPs so far, we need to pioneer new approaches to testing to find them.” According to the trust, pharmacy tests would offer patients a convenient alternative to visiting their GP, especially if they are reluctant to discuss why they think they may be at risk. Mr Gore said: “The Scottish Government is making impressive advancements in addressing hepatitis C but still too many people are living with the virus, unaware that they have it. “This fresh approach to testing could create the change in diagnosis rates that is desperately needed. “We are asking health boards to work with pharmacies in their area to examine offering hepatitis C testing where people have been at risk of infection.” In the English project, pharmacists displayed posters and handed out leaflets about the risk factors to filter out the “worried well”. http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1566864?UserKey=
Add this page to your favourite Social Bookmarking websites;         
  |
