Acute Hepatitis in East Asia & Pacific
How Acute Hepatitis affects 37 countries in East Asia & Pacific.
| # | Country | Share (%) |
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Across the 33 countries in East Asia & Pacific tracked in this dataset, acute hepatitis accounts for an average of 0.1% of total deaths. The regional average of 0.1% is roughly in line with the global average of 0.1%, placing East Asia & Pacific near the worldwide norm for acute hepatitis mortality. In East Asia & Pacific, acute hepatitis mortality is near global norms, though significant heterogeneity exists between high-income economies such as Japan and Australia and lower-income Pacific Island nations.
East Asia and the Pacific region spans high-income economies with advanced health systems alongside lower-income nations still building primary care infrastructure, creating wide variation in health outcomes. Within East Asia & Pacific, significant variation exists. Tonga records the highest share at 0.5% of total deaths, while Korea, Rep. has the lowest at 0.00%. This 0.5 percentage-point spread reflects differences in exposure, health system capacity, demographic structure, and risk factor prevalence across the region. Country-level pages provide detailed mortality breakdowns, time trends, and comparisons for each nation.
Hepatitis B vaccination — ideally with a birth dose followed by three infant doses — is the primary prevention strategy and is over 95% effective. Direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) cure over 95% of HCV infections in 8-12 weeks. The WHO elimination targets call for 90% diagnosis and 80% treatment coverage by 2030. Blood safety screening, injection safety, harm reduction for people who inject drugs, and safe food and water practices (for hepatitis A and E) complement vaccination and treatment.
The mortality estimates presented on this page are derived from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study, produced by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). The GBD synthesizes data from vital registration systems, verbal autopsies, cancer registries, and surveillance networks across more than 200 countries and territories. Death rates are expressed per 100,000 population and are age-standardized, which adjusts for differences in age structure between populations so that comparisons across countries and over time reflect genuine differences in mortality risk rather than demographic composition.
The dataset typically covers the period from 1990 to 2023, although availability varies by country and cause. When interpreting the figures for acute hepatitis in East Asia & Pacific, note that higher age-standardized rates indicate a greater mortality burden independent of whether a country's population is older or younger. Trends over time reveal whether public health interventions, economic development, and health system improvements have reduced or increased the toll of this condition in the region.
The cause-of-death categories used on this page follow the Global Burden of Disease cause hierarchy, a standardized classification that groups individual ICD-coded causes into clinically meaningful categories. The "share of deaths" metric shows what percentage of all deaths in a given country or region are attributed to acute hepatitis. A rising share does not necessarily mean more people are dying from this cause — it may reflect success in reducing competing causes of death. Always examine both absolute rates and shares for a complete picture of mortality patterns in East Asia & Pacific.