Press Release
UAMS Medical Center
UAMS to Offer Free Hepatitis C Screening Nov. 18
LITTLE ROCK — The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) will offer free screenings for hepatitis C from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Nov. 18 at the UAMS College of Public Health. Registration is not required, and screenings are limited to the first 500 participants.
Hepatitis C coordinators from UAMS and the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System will speak at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. about the prevalence of the disease and treatment options. Breakfast and lunch will be provided while supplies last. Parking is available for a nominal fee on the deck located at Markham Street and Hooper Drive. For information, call (501) 686-5177.
Hepatitis C is an inflammation of the liver caused by the hepatitis C virus. It affects more than 4 million Americans and often has no symptoms. People at risk for infection include those who received a blood transfusion before 1992, have ever used intravenous drugs, have frequent workplace contact with blood, have multiple sex partners or were born to a hepatitis C-infected mother.
If left untreated it can cause cirrhosis, a disease that results in scarring of the liver, liver dysfunction and liver failure. Cirrhosis is the leading cause of liver transplants.