Doctors failing to spot hepatitis C
Orla Chennaoui, Sky News 12th August 2008
Hundreds of thousands of Britons could be suffering from chronic liver disease because GPs are failing to spot the problem.
A survey published today shows that more than two thirds of doctors do not know how to read hepatitis C test results.
That means that as many of 90% of sufferers do not even know they are ill.
Hepatitis Factbox
- Hepatitis C is a blood-borne virus that infects liver cells
- It was discovered in the 1980s
- There are an around 200 million people worldwide infected
- Around 20% will naturally clear the virus - the other 80% experience long-term affects
- Hepatitis C is know as a 'silent epidemic' because its symptoms do not always show and when they do they can be misinterpreted by doctors
|
Catherine Ridgeway contracted the virus as a baby but despite displaying symptoms went undiagnosed for decades.
"My GP used to test me for diabetes and anaemia, but I knew it wasn't either of those because the blood tests always showed up negative," she said.
"I was shocked, but I also felt relief because I'd always suffered illness as a child and I knew I wasn't normal, like my friends."
Patients can live for years without suffering symptoms, meaning the illness goes undiagnosed, and can be passed on unwittingly.
Symptons of hepatitis C include weight loss, fatigue, nausea and tiredness.
"We do have to do more," said Charles Gore of the Hepatitis C Trust.
"The reason we have to do more is that we're going to have profound consequences.
"First of all on the NHS, which is going to have to spend a great deal of money managing people with liver disease.
"And then for the individuals who are going to die, and lots of them, just because somebody didn't offer them a test."
He added: "More must be done to equip GPs with the right information so they can correctly identify those who should be offered a hepatitis C test and interpret any result correctly."
There is no vaccine for hepatitis C but treatment can provide a cure in over half of patients.
It is a major cause of chronic liver disease in the UK, including cirrhosis and liver cancer.
Over one-third of GPs "failing to diagnose Hep C"
Management in Practice 12th August 2008
A survey has revealed that more than one third of doctors in general practice are unable to read their patients' hepatitis C results.
This figure is exacerbated by a failure to follow up with patients even when they have been correctly interpreted, according to a survey of 200 GPs by ICM Healthcare on behalf of The Hepatitis C Trust.
Some people who contract the disease suffer mild to more serious symptoms but one in five will clear the virus naturally. In about 20% of cases cirrhosis of the liver will develop over a period of 20 years or more.
Almost a third of GPs (32%) do not actively follow up with patients who test positive for hepatitis C and more than two-thirds (77%) said they did not consider infectious diseases to be a major threat to public health.
The only drug treatment for the disease is successful in only half of cases when administered during chronic infection. Success rates among those treated early after infection are significantly higher at around 90%.
Charles Gore, chief executive of The Hepatitis C Trust, said: "GPs must take some responsibility to ensure patients with hepatitis C are not left undiagnosed.
"More must be done to equip GPs with the right information so they can correctly identify those who should be offered a hepatitis C test and interpret any result correctly."
The poll was funded by pharmaceutical company Roche.
Copyright © PA Business 2008
GPs on the spot over blood tests
cambridge-news.co.uk 12th August 2008
PEOPLE in Cambridgeshire are at risk from a potentially deadly virus - because many family doctors do not know how to interpret a test for the disease.
The shocking claim comes from a national charity, which has carried out a nationwide survey to find out how GPs deal with tests for hepatitis C, the liver infection that can kill.
Most doctors are able to test their patients for the blood-borne infection, which can be passed by transfusions (pre 1991), piercing, tattoos, dental work, and sharing toothbrushes or razors.
But according to the survey, carried out for the Hepatitis C Trust, four out of 10 Cambridgeshire GPs are unable to read the test results correctly. The survey also found that half the GPs questioned in Cambridgeshire "were not confident in their ability to diagnose and manage hepatitis C infection."
A spokeswoman for the trust said:
"Approximately 500,000 people in the UK are thought to be living with Hepatitis C. Of these, 90 per cent don't know they are infected.
"Hepatitis C is a major cause of chronic liver disease, including cirrhosis and liver cancer. Patients can live for many years without experiencing symptoms, and as a consequence, a large number remain undiagnosed."
Symptoms of the disease include digestive problems, joint pains and depression.
Charles Gore, the trust's chief executive, said: "More must be done to equip GPs so they can correctly identify those who should be offered a hepatitis C test, and then interpret any result correctly."
Dr Kate King, a specialist for the Health Protection Agency covering Cambridgeshire, said: "The analysis is carried out by an expert in a laboratory, and the results will then be passed back to the doctor who can tell the patient.
"If there is a clear-cut result whether a patient is infected or not that will be passed on. If it is an equivocal result, they might recommend a further test.
"GPs may lack experience in these tests, but they are certainly not left alone when it comes to interpreting them."
If people are worried about the disease they can ring the trust helpline 0845 223 4424
Press Release
12th August, London, UK Worrying results from a survey published today show that more than a third (38%) of GPs are unable to correctly read their patients' hepatitis C test results. These shocking findings are made worse given that 9 out of 10 GPs routinely administer these tests. This situation could leave thousands of individuals at risk of unknowingly living with the silent, but potentially deadly hepatitis C virus. Even more worryingly, these patients may think that a lack of response from their GP means that they do not have hepatitis C. 1
The rate of progression of the hepatitis C virus is often slow and variable but over time can lead to liver disease, cirrhosis or even cancer.Given the possible deadly prognosis of this disease, it is disturbing to find from the survey conducted amongst GPs in the UK, that one third (32%) of GPs do not actively follow-up patients with a positive hepatitis C diagnosis and more than two-thirds (77%) of GPs do not consider infectious diseases as a major threat to public health in the UK today.1
Between 200,000 to 500,000 people in the UK are thought to be living with the disease,2 10 times more than those living with HIV.3 Of these, 90% don’t even know that they are infected with the disease.2 Hepatitis C is an infection of the liver caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and in the UK is a major cause of chronic liver disease, including cirrhosis and liver cancer.
“These results are startling. GPs represent the front-line interface between medicine and the public. They are in the perfect position to change our appallingly low hepatitis C diagnosis rate. If they are currently misdiagnosing patients or missing them completely, it is because the Department of Health has failed to deliver on its commitment to improve professional awareness. The Face It! Campaign needs to get a grip. If we diagnose people with hepatitis C, we can treat and cure them. If we don’t, very many of them are going to die,” said Dr Peter Williams, a GP from East Sussex.
“GPs must take some responsibility to ensure patients with hepatitis C are not left undiagnosed. More must be done to equip GPs with the right information so they can correctly identify those who should be offered a hepatitis C test and interpret any result correctly." Charles Gore, Chief Executive of leading UK charity, The Hepatitis C Trust.
References
1. ICM Healthcare, 2008 - Hepatitis C Regional GP study
2. All-party Parliamentary group on hepatology. The hepatitis C scandal. London: All-party Parliamentary group on hepatology; 2004.
3. The Hepatitis C Trust, www.hepctrust.org.uk
4. NHS, 2004, Hepatitis C Essential information for professionals and guidance on testing
