The World Health Organization previewed new guidelines designed to simplify regulations around testing and treating patients for hepatitis B, or HBV, that an agency official said should expand eligibility for treatment to half of the people infected with HBV, up from the current 8% to 15%.
Nearly 300 million people are living with HBV currently and 820,000 deaths from the disease each year.
The new guidelines are specifically designed to increase access to testing and eligibility for treatment for patients in sub-Saharan Africa, which accounts for 70% of all new HBV infections, according to WHO. The existing 2015 guidelines include complex eligibility requirements for treatment that often make it difficult for patients in the region to access care until it is too late, according to Olufunmilayo Lesi, who runs the hepatitis team at WHO.
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Andrew Green@_andrew_green
Andrew Green, a 2025 Alicia Patterson Fellow, works as a contributing reporter for Devex from Berlin.
