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Confirmed and suspected
hepatitis C
cases among Massachusetts residents ages 15-24 climbed from 254 in 2001 to
at least 784 in 2005, the state Department of Public Health reports.
"I suspect there is a direct correlation between the increase in hepatitis C
among younger people and the increase in injection drug use and heroin use,
in particular," said Public Health Commissioner John Auerbach, who called
the situation "terribly tragic."
"I am seeing, sadly, a fair number of 13-, 14-, 15, 16-year- olds with IV
drug use and hepatitis C," said Dr. Maureen Jonas, a pediatric liver
specialist at Children's Hospital Boston. "A lot of them, not all of them,
knew that the person whose needle they shared had hepatitis of some sort."
Jonas said liver specialists typically begin treatment only when patients
are off illegal drugs and in a setting where they can adhere to drug
therapy, which can take six months to a year. And once adolescents have
completed treatment, Jonas said, "We tell them, 'You're not immune to this
now. You can go out and shoot up one more time and you get it all over
again.."
Health authorities say Massachusetts is better than most states at tracking
infectious diseases, and some of the rise may be due to more diligent
reporting by doctors. Still, the state is responding to the increase:
*The Bureau of Substance Abuse Services has established pilot programs at
Boston Medical Center and at community health centers to ask every patient
about drug abuse history.
*Retired doctors and nurses are being recruited to review positive hepatitis
C test results and interview young patients to learn more about how the
disease is spreading.
Boston Globe (05.08.07):: Stephen Smith |
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