Vietnam successfully tests hepatitis drug: paper

Hau Giang Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company (DHG) has announced the result of clinical tests on a medicine named Naturenz that can be used to treat patients over 18 years old carrying hepatitis B and C viruses, and having liver disorders, the Saigon Times Daily reported on August 19.
Hau Giang Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company (DHG) has announced theresult of clinical tests on a medicine named Naturenz that can be usedto treat patients over 18 years old carrying hepatitis B and C viruses,and having liver disorders, the Saigon Times Daily reported on August19.

Naturenz is synthesized from a number of natural enzymesavailable in latex of papayas and other extracts of bitter gourds,eggfruits, radish and garlic. The drug is considered to possess highbiological value in prevention and treatment of hepatotoxicity.

Naturenzearlier had been tested on 600 war veterans exposed to dioxin inwartime with positive results recorded. After 12 weeks of taking thedrug, these people had their liver enzymes returned to normal level.

Accordingto associate doctor Tran Chi Liem, who used to serve as Deputy Ministerof Health, Naturenz is among few medicines invented and produced byVietnam. The Institute of Biotechnology has been doing research on thisantidote since 1986.

Thanks to the wide availability of commonvegetables and fruit and low labour costs in the country, the drug isseen as affordable for prevention and treatments of those sufferingliver diseases.

“It is a good scientific research topicconsistent with Vietnam’s strategic development of the pharmaceuticalindustry,” the Daily quoted Liem as saying.

During a meeting heldin Ho Chi Minh City in July in response to World Hepatitis Day, arepresentative from the World Health Organisation (WHO) releasedstatistics showing that 11 in every 100,000 Vietnamese people areinfected with hepatitis virus - a “silent killer”.

According tothe WHO, viral hepatitis – a group of infectious diseases known ashepatitis A, B, C, D and E – affects millions of people worldwide,causing acute and chronic liver diseases and killing around 1.4 millionpeople each year.

In Vietnam, it is estimated that 10-25 percentof the population are infected with hepatitis B virus, while 0.4-4.1percent of the total are infected with hepatitis C.

Viralhepatitis is rated among the diseases needing close supervision by theHealth Ministry. The ministry recently set up a national-level advisorygroup to draw up guidelines on the treatment of hepatitis C and expandthe vaccination rate of hepatitis B.-VNA

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