This Sunday, 28th July is World Hepatitis Day and LSHTM Library, Archive & Open Research Services (LAORS) have prepared a book display to raise awareness on this important topic. Before showcasing some of the gems from our collections, let’s have a look at what the most recent figures about hepatitis say and why right now ‘It’s time for action’.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), deaths from viral hepatitis-related causes are increasing with around one hepatitis death every 30 seconds (1). To make things worse, a huge number of people (nearly 256 million) living with hepatitis B or hepatitis C are undiagnosed. Early signs of hepatitis B or C are hard to spot and most severe symptoms, such as cirrhosis or liver cancer, only appear once the disease is advanced (2).
The WHO has the ambitious global goal to eliminate hepatitis by 2030 (3), but to achieve this, action needs to be quick, and this year’s theme, ‘It’s time for action’, is a call to join forces and campaign for more widespread testing, treatment and vaccination to realise a hepatitis-free world. To learn more about the WHO initiatives on World Hepatitis Day and how you can get involved, please visit: https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-hepatitis-day/2024
LAORS collections have a wealth of print and digital resources on hepatitis and communicable and infectious diseases. To search or browse our full range of resources, please head to Discover and take a look at our video How to use Discover in under 5 minutes! for useful tips on searching it effectively.
Highlights from our book display on World Hepatitis Day 2024 include:
Anon (2001) Introduction of hepatitis B vaccine into childhood immunization services : management guidelines, including information for health workers and parents. Geneva: Department of Vaccines and Biologicals, World Health Organization.
Blumberg, B. S. (2002) Hepatitis B : the hunt for a killer virus. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press.
Fagan, E. A. & Harrison, T. J. (2000) Viral hepatitis : a handbook for clinicians and scientists. New York: BIOS.
Gates, R. H. (2003) Infectious disease secrets. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: Hanley & Belfus.
Morgan, D. R. (1995) A code of practice for: Implementation of the UK hepatitis B immunization guidelines for the protection of patients and staff. London: British Medical Association Board of Science and Education.
Selgelid, M. J. et al. (2006) Ethics and infectious disease. Malden, MA ; Blackwell Pub.
Shetty, K. & Wu, G. Y. (2009) Chronic viral hepatitis : diagnosis and therapeutics. 2nd ed. Dordrecht: Humana Press.
Thomas, H. C. (Howard C. ) (2014) Viral hepatitis. 4th ed. Chichester, West Sussex ; Wiley Blackwell.
Webber, R. (2020) Communicable diseases a global perspective. 6th edition. Wallingford, Oxfordshire ; CABI.
Zuckerman, A. J. (1996) Prevention of hepatitis B in the newborn, children and adolescents. London: Royal College of Physicians.
And many more titles, which you can find in the Reading Room at the LSHTM Library. See you there!
References:
1) The World Health Organization. World Hepatitis Day 2024. Key Messages. [online]. 2024. [Accessed 23 July 2024]. Available from: https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-hepatitis-day/2024/key-messages
2) The World Health Organization. Health topics. Hepatitis. [online]. 2020. [Accessed 23 July 2024]. Available from: https://www.who.int/health-topics/hepatitis#tab=tab_2
3) The World Health Organization. Global HIV, Hepatitis and STIs Programmes. Global health sector strategies 2022-2030. [online]. 2022. [Accessed 23 July 2024]. Available from: https://www.who.int/teams/global-hiv-hepatitis-and-stis-programmes/strategies/global-health-sector-strategies
