Street Survey on Hepatitis B

In this week’s edition - we’ll walk out to the streets and survey Singaporeans about their knowledge of hepatitis B.

Questions to the general public are taken from a study published in the Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology published 14th march 2021, called “ Public awareness and knowledge of liver health and diseases in SIngapore “

Hepatitis B Questionnaire

Question 1

Hepatitis B is a bacterial infection. True or false?

Answer : False - its a viral infection

Question 2

Hepatitis B can be prevented by vaccination. True or false?

Answer : True - you can get vaccinated with 3 doses of hepatitis B vaccination for protection. In Singapore, it is mandatory for all new borns to be vaccinated with the 3 doses of hepatitis B vaccine.

Question 3

Hepatitis B can be transmitted by eating contaminated food. True or False?

Answer : False - Hepatitis b can only be transmitted via contact with blood or body fluids or sexual interactions.

Question 4

Hepatitis B can cause liver failure or even liver cancer. True or False?

Answer : True. Hepatitis B is can lead to long term liver inflammation causing liver failure and liver cancer.

Question 5

Multiple choice

Which of these 4 choices are wrong?

Hepatitis B can be spread via

1. A) Mother to child during delivery
2. B) Contact with the blood of someone who has hepatitis b?
3. C) Sharing needle or razor blade with someone who has hepatitis b?
4. D) Mosquito bites

Answer : (D) - Hepatitis B cannot be spread through mosquito bites!

Question 6

How do doctors like myself test for Hepatitis B virus infection in my patients?

1. A) blood test
2. B) stool test
3. C) Ultrasound of the liver

Answer : A - we often test the patient’s blood for Hepatitis B surface antigen and Hepatitis B surface antibodies as the preliminary screening tests for Hepatitis B.

These are very easily available tests in clinics that do not require fasting and results are usually available within a matter of days.

Question 7

Can Hepatitis B cause a lifelong infection? Or is it just a mild infection that you can recover completely from?

Answer : Hepatitis B can cause lifelong infection. In fact, the chance of chronic infection is highest amongst children. 90% of infants get long term Hepatitis B infection, and 25-50% of children 1-5 years of age will have long term Hepatitis B infection.

Question 8

Are there treatment available for chronic hepatitis b? Yes or No?

Answer : There are medications now to help the body fight the Hepatitis B virus.

There are also medications now on trial in Singapore to prevent Hepatitis B virus from multiplying in your body.

Conclusion

As concluded form our series of interviews conducted, the general public’s knowledge of Hepatitis B in Singapore is still lacking. Please check out our series of articles relating to Hepatitis B to understand more on this viral disease.