TY  - JOUR
A1  - Unnewehr, Markus
A1  - Stich, August
T1  - Fighting Hepatitis B in North Korea: Feasibility of a Bi-modal Prevention Strategy
JF  - Journal of Korean Medical Science
N2  - In North Korea, the prevalence of hepatitis B is high due to natural factors, gaps in vaccination, and the lack of antiviral treatment. Aid projects are urgently needed, however impeded by North Korea's political and economical situation and isolation. The feasibility of a joint North Korean and German humanitarian hepatitis B prevention program was assessed. Part 1: Hepatitis B vaccination catch-up campaign. Part 2: Implementation of endoscopic ligation of esophageal varices (EVL) by trainings in Germany and North Korea. By vaccinating 7 million children between 2010 and 2012, the hepatitis B vaccination gap was closed. Coverage of 99.23% was reached. A total of 11 hepatitis B-induced liver cirrhosis patients (mean age 41.1 yr) with severe esophageal varices and previous bleedings were successfully treated by EVL without major complications. A clinical standard operating procedure, a feedback system and a follow-up plan were developed. The bi-modal preventive strategy was implemented successfully. Parts of the project can serve as an example for other low-income countries, however its general transferability is limited due to the special circumstances in North Korea.
KW  - therapy
KW  - hepatitis B
KW  - Democratic People's Republic of Korea
KW  - ligation
KW  - cirrhosis
KW  - diagnosis
KW  - infection
KW  - health
KW  - primary prophylaxis
KW  - mass vaccination
KW  - esophagoscopy
Y1  - 2015
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-138773
VL  - 30
ER  -