Pakistan has been identified as the leading contributor to the worldwide population affected by hepatitis C, according to the World Health Organisation’s Global Hepatitis Report 2026. The report highlights Pakistan among the top 10 countries with the highest number of hepatitis C-related deaths, raising concerns about unsafe medical practices in the country, including the reuse of syringes and inadequate infection control measures.
The WHO report emphasizes that hepatitis B and C, though preventable and treatable, are among the most fatal infections globally, with hepatitis C being curable. In 2024, approximately 287 million individuals were living with chronic hepatitis B or C, with 240 million having hepatitis B and 47 million affected by hepatitis C, as reported by Pakistan’s leading daily, The News International.
In 2024, hepatitis B and C led to a total of 1.34 million deaths, with hepatitis B accounting for 1.1 million deaths and hepatitis C for 240,000 deaths, primarily due to liver cirrhosis and liver cancer. These two infections are responsible for over 95% of deaths related to viral hepatitis worldwide.
Pakistan is singled out in the WHO report as the primary contributor to the global burden of hepatitis C infections. The report links this burden to factors such as transmission, unsafe medical practices, injection drug use, and deficiencies in diagnosis and treatment protocols.
The presence of banned reusable syringes and counterfeit auto-disable syringes in Pakistan’s markets has raised alarms among health experts. These items, if used repeatedly by unqualified practitioners, can escalate the transmission of hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV. The prevalence of unnecessary injections, widespread quackery, and inadequate infection control measures in healthcare settings in Pakistan underscores the urgent need for improved practices.
