Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

About 0.5 percent of the Iranian population has Hepatitis C virus, which has come to the top of virus-induced liver diseases in many parts of the world, ISNA news agency reported.

Doctor Nasser Ebrahim Daryani, a faculty member of Tehran University of Medical Sciences, said that the number of people infected with Hepatitis C has increased in Iran.

He added that at the same time the amount of people infected with Hepatitis B has decreased.

Daryani also said that about 40 percent of the drug addicts have Hepatitis C, adding that the number of injecting drug users in the country has grown as well.

The infection is emerging mostly due to the problem of intravenous drug abuse and needle-sharing in the country.

Daryani also pointed out that most of the time both Hepatitis B and C develop in single men and those who serve prison sentences.

In October 2012, deputy head of Iran's Drug Control Headquarters Taha Taheri said there are more than 100,000 prisoners in Iran serving sentences for drug-related crimes.

According to official statistics, there are about 2 million drug addicts in Iran.

Hepatitis C infection is now the most common cause of end-stage liver disease in many countries.

Every year, about 1.4 million people experience chronic illness from their infection with hepatitis A, approximately 2 billion suffer from Hepatitis B and around 150 million from Hepatitis C.

There are five main types of viral hepatitis: A, B, C, D, E. Hepatitis A and E are typically caused by ingestion of contaminated food or water. Hepatitis B, C and D are typically caused by contact with contaminated blood or body fluids.