How much is the cost of hepatitis B test in Nigeria + hepatitis B viral load test price in Nigeria

How much is the cost of hepatitis B test in Nigeria + hepatitis B viral load test price in Nigeria, cost of hepatitis C test in Nigeria? How much is hepatitis test in Nigeria? How much is hepatitis b viral load test price in Nigeria?

Hepatitis B is a highly infectious or a contagious disease that leads to inflammatory condition of the liver and the liver cells. Your liver produces bile to help you digest food and it also removes toxins from your body.

Hepatitis B, hepatitis C or other viral hepatitis causes inflammation and scarring in the liver, making it hard for the liver to do its job.

There are five main types of hepatitis, and they are:

*👉HEPATITIS A*
*👉HEPATITIS B*
*👉HEPATITIS C*
*👉HEPATITIS D*
*👉HEPATITIS E*

*_The first three are the most common ones. Hepatitis B and C are the most common causes of liver cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer.

*SYMPTOMS OF HEPATITIS ARE:*
*_👉Stomach/Abdominal pains._*
*_👉Dark Urine._*
*_👉Nausea/Vomiting._*
*_👉Joints Pain._*
*_👉Weakness and Fatigue._*
*_👉Fever._*
*_👉Loss of Appetite._*
*_👉Yellowing of the eyes and maybe skin (Jaundice)._*
*_👉Diarrhea._*
*_👉Pale stool
*_👉Abdominal swelling

*SPREADING OF THE DISEASE:*

*HEPATITIS A: _It is spread mainly through food or drinking water that has been contaminated by an infected person._*

*HEPATITIS B: _It is transmitted through contact with the blood or other body fluids of an infected person. It can also be passed on from mother to child during childbirth, from sexual contact and via needle pricks._*

*_HEPATITIS C: _It is mainly spread through blood to blood contact. In rare cases, it can be transmitted during childbirth and via needle pricks._*

TESTING FOR HEPATITIS B AND OTHER TYPES OF VIRAL HEPATITIS

Getting tested for hepatitis B or C is the first and most important step in fighting the viruses.

WHY SHOULD YOU GO AND GET TESTED FOR HEPATITIS B?
it is important you know you HBV status… Testing positive is not the end of life..it will only help you know how to live a healthy and whether or not to start treatment for hepatitis b. Hepatitis B screening test is also very important test for employment and as a combined compulsory test marriage. Also before you get the hepatitis b vaccine , you will be requested to do HBV test.

What does hepatitis b testing entail?

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) tests may be used for a variety of reasons. Some of the tests detect antibodies produced in response to HBV infection; some detect antigens produced by the virus, and others detect viral DNA.

The available Hepatitis investigations include:

1- HBsAg, Surface antigen screening.
2- Hep B surface antibody,
3- Hep B Quantification and Confirmation,
4- Hepatitis B panel profile(HBeAg; Hepatitis B e Antigen; anti-HBc; Hepatitis B Core Antibody; anti-HBc, IgM; anti-HBe; Hepatitis B e Antibody;) and
5- Hepatitis B (DNA) viral load.

Number 1, called the hepatitis B surface antigen screening is the most popular screening test for hepatitis B in Nigeria and globally. It is cheap, easy to do and requires less skills to perform. If you have the hepatitis b screening kits, you can even get yourself tested at home.

What kind of test is hepatitis b or C?

Hepatitis B or C test is a blood test. A blood sample will be taken from you vein by the doctor or the laboratory scientist and analysed for any viral hepatitis. The test for hepatitis b is known as screening for hepatitis b surface antigen, HBsAg.

When will results be out after going for test?

Same day… It takes just 10minutes for your hepatitis B or C result to be out. It is just a screening rapid diagnostic test. Hepatitis B viral load may take longer say 24 – 48 hours.

Interpretation of hepatitis B screening test.

The table below simplifies the interpretation of hepatitis b test:

Hepatitis B viral load test

HBV viral load is above test done by persons already infected with hepatitis B. It is a test used to know how much of the hepatitis b virus is in the blood. It is mostly used to ascertain the progressive of treatment after commencing treatment with hepatitis B drugs and also the patient’s ability to infect others. It helps to know the titre value of the hepatitis b virus in your blood. HBV viral load is also used to determine whether or not to institute treatment.

Interpretation of hepatitis B viral load test…

According to hepbpositive.uk.org, the results comes in numbers which can be interpreted as below:
➡️0 to 500 as a harmless uninfectious trace
➡️500 to 5,000 as unlikely to ever cause harm or infect ,
➡️5,000 to 250,000 as low risk and infectious via a transfusion of blood to a wound
➡️250,000 to 1 million as medium risk infectious via transfusion and via sexual fluids,
➡️1 million to 1 billion as high risk infectious via transfusion and via sexual fluids

Where can you get tested for hepatitis B and hepatitis C?

Not hard to find, go to any the labs or hospital near you and request to be tested for hepatitis B or C. In Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Benin City, or any parts of the country, getting tested for hepatitis b or c is quite easy. Go to any of the laboratories. For hepatitis b viral load, not every laboratory perform this test, you can go to any of the big laboratories like Pathcare, Union Diagnostics, Benin Medical Care, Raytouch Diagnostics, NIMR Yaba. etc.

How much is the cost of hepatitis B test in Nigeria + hepatitis B viral load test price in Nigeria

Hepatitis b test in Nigeria cost around #1,000 to #2,000 naira in most laboratories. The cost of hepatitis c test in Nigeria is the same, around #1,000- #2,000 Naira.

For hepatitis b viral load test, it is quite expensive. The cost of hepatitis b viral load in Nigeria is around #35,000 – #50,000 Naira especially in Lagos, Abuja, Kaduna, Kano, Port Harcourt, Enugu and so on.

PS:

Hepatitis B serologic testing involves measurement of several hepatitis B virus (HBV)-specific antigens and antibodies. Different serologic “markers”or combinations of markers are used to identify different phases of HBV infection and to determine whether a patient has acute or chronic HBV infection, is immune to HBV as a result of prior infection or vaccination, or is susceptible to infection.

Credit:

Dr Udomoh for ©NIMEDHEALTH