What are the incidences of Hepatitis B or C?
Infection with HBV has a worldwide occurrence, with the highest incidence in China, Southeast Asia, most parts of Africa, most Pacific islands, parts of the Middle East, and in the Amazon Basin where infection occurs in early infancy and childhood. There are approximately 300,000 new HBV infections in the United States each year, most cases occur in young adults between 15 and 30 years of age in urban areas. Approximately 75,000 become symptomatic with jaundice, 10,000 require hospitalization, and 250 die of fulminant hepatitis. Currently, there are about 200 million people worldwide who are infected with HCV, 4.9 million of those are in the United States (estimates go as high as 15 million) and 5 million in Western Europe. The prevalence seems to be higher in Eastern Europe than in Western Europe. In industrialized countries, HCV accounts for 20% of cases of acute Hepatitis, 70% of cases of chronic Hepatitis, 40% of cases of end-stage cirrhosis, 60% of cases of hepatocellular carcinom
