PREVALENCE OF HEPATITIS B PATIENTS IN OUTDOOR PATIENTS

Hepatitis B is a potentially life-threatening liver infection caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV). It is a major global health problem. It can cause chronic infection and puts people at high risk of death from cirrhosis and liver cancer. This cross-sectional study was conducted in medical outdoor department of DHQ Teaching Hospital Gujranwala. Patients of both gender aging 18 to 60 years were included. A total of 180 patients presenting in outdoor department with any kind of symptoms were screened for Hepatitis B (HbsAg) using rapid screen test kits. The mean age of the patients was 45.56±4.57 years with minimum age of 21 years and maximum age of 58 years. The mean age of male and female patients was 48.24±3.46 and 42.65±2.34 years respectively. There were 98 (54.44%) male patients and 82 (45.56%) female patients. Out of 180 patients 91 patients (50.55%) were positive for HbsAg. Keywords: Hepatitis B, Outdoor patient