В округе Ламу зафиксирован высокий уровень гепатита С среди пожилых людей, связанный с инъекционным потреблением наркотиков

Lamu County is recording a high burden of Hepatitis C among the older population. The infections are linked to the injection of drugs. The affected victims are aged between 40 and 70, with infections reported among both men and women. Dr Khadija Hassan, Viral Hepatitis and STI Lead at the National AIDS and STI Control Programme (NASCOP), said many of those infected have a history of injecting themselves with drugs. Dr Hassan explained that injecting drugs exposes individuals to Hepatitis C through shared needles and other equipment. “What is more worrying is that we are recording high cases of Hepatitis C in the older population,” she said. She said that the majority of men infected are seamen and beach boys. Dr Hassan revealed that most of the victims use drugs to cope with stress. “They use hard drugs such as bhang, cocaine and heroin to help them manage stress,” she said. Lamu has a long history of drug use, particularly among some coastal communities. NASCOP estimates that Lamu has one of the highest Hepatitis C prevalence rates in the country, at about 29 per cent. Mombasa follows at 27 per cent, while Kwale, Taita-Taveta and Nairobi are also among counties reporting high prevalence. “Prevalence of Hepatitis C has been high in the population, and we fear the cases might be more,” said Hassan. The high Hepatitis C burden has pushed NASCOP and scientists from the Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri) to conduct mass screening to the population. The exercise is being conducted across Lamu and surrounding areas. Hospitals where screening is taking place include King Fahad, Faza, Kizingitini, Hindi, Witu and Mpeketoni. Besides those who inject drugs, the prison has also been found to have high prevalence of the disease. The screening will be conducted among inmates and officers at Hindu prisons. Screening points are also being set up in communities and worship places while large gatherings and celebrations are also being used to reach more people. This activity coincides with the Maulid Festival in Lamu, scheduled to take place from Tuesday. The Islamic event brings together locals and international communities. Dr Missiani Ochwoto, a Kemri medical scientist, said the exercise will generate data on the prevalence of Hepatitis C and Hepatitis B in the general population. “We want to cover all of Lamu and provide seroprevalence of Hepatitis C and B,” he said. Ochwoto said KEMRI is working with NASCOP and the Ministry of Health on research, mass screening, public awareness and linkage to care. People who test positive will undergo confirmatory testing before being linked to treatment. Those who test negative but remain at risk will be encouraged to adopt prevention measures, including using sterile and new injecting equipment. “We encourage use of sterile and new syringes in drug users,” added Hassan. People who use drugs will also be linked to rehabilitation and harm-reduction services, including medication-assisted treatment clinics. Unlike many chronic viral infections, Hepatitis C can be cured. Treatment has also become simpler, with direct-acting antiviral medicines available for different virus genotypes. Kemri and NASCOP hope that wider testing will help identify more infections, put those who test positive on treatment and prevent further transmission. The screening campaign is part of Kenya’s efforts to eliminate Hepatitis C by 2030.