Most of those infected with hepatitis B survive. But in acute cases, the virus attacks the liver, causing a disease called cirrhosis and cancer. These kill about 300,000 people in China each year, about 80 percent of whom had hepatitis B, Liu said. Experts also blamed an illegal trade in needles that have been inadequately cleaned and repackaged. They also said there are increasing reports of infection from acupuncture, a traditional Chinese remedy in which dozens of needles can be stuck into the skin.
Effective vaccinations exist, and are now required for children in the United States.
Also Wednesday, the official Xinhua News Agency issued a rare warning about the spread of AIDS in China via tainted blood and unclean blood collection methods. Beijing has recently admitted it had a tainted blood problem after years of trying to silence doctors and journalists who publicized high AIDS rates in rural villages. China says 600,000 people have contracted the deadly virus, about 71 percent of them drug users who shared needles. Xinhua quoted the Ministry of Health as saying 0.8 percent of AIDS victims got the disease from tainted blood or unclean collection methods. Sex was blamed for just 7 percent of infections, Xinhua said.