Repatriates from the CIS bring Hepatitis C to Israel

According to data announced at a meeting of the Knesset Commission on Aliya and Absorption, repatriates from the CIS and Eastern European countries constitute the main Israeli risk group for the presence of hepatitis C virus (C) in the blood.

According to officials of the Ministry of Health, Israel is waiting for a surge of hepatitis, for which it is time to prepare now - by identifying carriers of the virus and training relevant medical specialists. To identify and register carriers of the virus, the Ministry of Health identified three main risk groups in which, with a high probability, there are thousands of carriers.

Repatriates from the CIS countries and Eastern Europe occupy the first line among the risk groups, because, according to specialists of the Ministry of Health, the low level of medical care in the countries of origin created extremely favorable conditions for transmission of the virus. In particular, the use of reusable needles for injections and their insufficient decontamination contribute to the spread of hepatitis.

In addition to the repatriates from the CIS countries, the risk group, among which may be carriers of the virus, are all Israelis who received blood transfusions or blood products before 1992, when the hepatitis C test was introduced. .

Viral hepatitis C is a dangerous disease that has earned the nickname “gentle killer” among the people. In an advanced state, the disease leads to irreversible destruction of the liver as a result of cirrhosis or an oncological process - such patients can only be saved by a liver transplant, and even then not always.