Testing Positive: Now What?
July 8, 2008
What do your hepatitis B test results mean, and what do you do if you test positive?
Family nurse practitioner Jian Zhang will answer those questions in a free upcoming workshop, “Hepatitis B: Am I at Risk?,” on July 19 from 10 a.m. to noon at Excelsior Health Services located at 888 Paris Street. Free screenings and lunch will be provided. A breast cancer awareness seminar will also take place concurrently.
Zhang, who has taught educational hepatitis B workshops for over two years, said that the most common question she encounters involves interpreting test results.
The hepatitis B surface antigen (HepBsAg) indicates whether one has chronic hepatitis B or is a carrier of the disease, while the hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs, sometimes also written as HepBsAb) tells you if you are protected against hepatitis B, according to Zhang.
If both your HepBsAg and anti-HBs blood tests are negative, then you are not protected and should get vaccinated. You are protected from hepatitis B if your HepBsAg is negative and anti-HBs is positive.
Patients should ask their doctors for these blood tests if they are unsure if they have the disease. There is also a vaccine, a series of three shots given over six months, that can protect people for life.
Zhang will also discuss medical care and applying for low-cost medication. While monthly fees can cost up to $800, a patient assistance program can reduce the fee to $12.
Zhang knows firsthand the fatal effects of hepatitis B; her close friend learned too late that he had the disease, after being diagnosed with liver cancer. He passed away within six months.
“There is no healthy hepatitis B carrier. If you have the disease, you must follow up with your doctor to get monitored and treated,” she said.
The workshop is part of the Chinese Hospital and Chinese Community Health Plan’s collaboration with the S.F. Hep B Free campaign to target and educate the Chinese community in San Francisco.
For more information on screenings or educational classes, call (415) 677-2488. For more about the S.F. Hep B Free campaign: sfhepbfree.org.
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Ethnic Media Unites to Spread S.F. Hep B Free Message
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