Hepatitis C Kills More Americans Than HIV/AIDS
美国死于丙肝人数超过艾滋病
The number of deaths from the hepatitis C virus is up while deaths related to HIV/AIDS are down, according to U.S. researchers. As a result, more Americans are now dying from hepatitis C than from HIV/AIDS.
根据美国研究人员研究结果显示,HIV / AIDS死亡人数有递减的趋势,而丙型肝炎死亡人数一直在增加。结果,越来越多的美国人现在死于丙肝而非死于艾滋病。
Researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) used death certificates to track fatal cases of three viral infections - hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS - over almost a decade, starting in 1999.
美国疾病控制与预防中心的研究人员自从1999年以来在近几十年中用死亡证明跟踪三种致命的病毒感染-乙肝,丙肝及HIV / AIDS。
Over nine years, HIV deaths steadily decreased as prevention programs took effect and better treatment became available. At the same time, hepatitis C cases climbed, and by 2007, more Americans were dying from that virus than from the one that causes AIDS.
在9年中,艾滋病由于不间断的预防项目和更好的治疗生效而使死亡人数不断减少。与此同时,丙型肝炎病例攀升,截至2007年,更多的美国人死于这种病毒而非艾滋病病毒。
Hepatitis B deaths were relatively steady during the study period, and they accounted for a fraction of the deaths caused by the other two viruses.
在研究期间乙型肝炎死亡率相对固定,只占另外两种病毒的一小部分。
Co-author John Ward, director of the CDC hepatitis division, says the uptick in hepatitis C deaths doesn't indicate more people are becoming infected.
疾病控制与预防中心肝炎部门主任兼作者之一的约翰·沃德表示丙型肝炎死亡率的上升不表示越来越多的人将被感染。
"The number of deaths from hepatitis C [is] increasing," he says, "because the persons infected with this virus are aging into a period of their lives when they're becoming sick with liver cirrhosis or liver cancer caused by this viral infection."
“丙型肝炎的死亡的人数在增加,”他说道,“因为感染这种病毒的人已经进入老龄化阶段,他们因为肝硬化和肝癌而加重病症，造成这种病毒感染。”
Hepatitis C was discovered in 1989, and Ward says most of the three million Americans who are infected with it were exposed before then - for example through contaminated blood transfusions or by injecting illicit drugs.
丙型肝炎在1989年被发现,沃德表示三百万美国人的绝大多数在通过例如被污染的输血或注射毒品之前已经受到感染。
A person can carry the virus for decades without any symptoms, until major, and often fatal, liver disease develops.
一个人可以携带病毒几十年而没有任何症状,直到扩散,并且通常是致命肝脏疾病发展。
Ward says the successes of the fight against HIV/AIDS could serve as a roadmap for battling hepatitis C. That includes more testing of people at risk, especially those born between 1945 and 1965, and developing a robust treatment network to reach patients with the latest generation of effective medicines.
沃德表示成功抗争HIV / AIDS的事例可对于与丙型肝炎抗争起到指导作用。这将包括更多的风险测试,尤其是对于那些出生在1945年与1965年之间的人来说更是如此,还要使用最新一代的有效药物为患者建立一个壮大的处理网络。
"And when we say effective, we're really talking about eliminating the viral infection - essentially, a cure of the infection, not lifelong or ongoing chronic therapy, but a course of treatment that for 70 percent of persons can lead to elimination of the virus."
“当我们表示有效的时候,我们实际上是在讨论消除病毒感染——一种治疗的感染,而不是终身的或者是正在进行的慢性治疗,一个疗程的治疗会使70%的人会彻底消除病毒。”
He says the effort could save 80-120,000 lives over the coming years.
他表示这些努力在近未来可能拯救80至120000人的性命。 |