Girona Hospitals' Emergency Screening Boosts Hepatitis B and C Diagnosis

A study carried out at Hospital Universitari Dr. Josep Trueta and Hospital Santa Caterina in Girona screened 2,000 adults who visited emergency departments between October 2023 and January 2024. The screening detected active hepatitis C infections in 0.55% of patients and hepatitis B in 1%, rates three to four times higher than those reported for the general Spanish population.

The automatic inclusion of hepatitis B and C tests in emergency blood panels increased diagnostic coverage eightfold, enabling earlier treatment referrals and supporting Spain’s goal of eradicating these infections as a public‑health problem by 2030. Findings were published in the journal *Infectious Diseases of Poverty* and highlight the role of emergency services in reaching vulnerable groups such as people who inject drugs, migrants, and individuals with limited primary‑care access.