Among PWID with chronic HCV infection, proportion with detectable HCV RNA decreased from 100 percent in 2006 to 48 percent in 2019<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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TUESDAY, July 12, 2022 (HealthDay News) — Among persons who inject drugs (PWID) with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, the proportion in whom HCV RNA was detected decreased from 100 to 48 percent from 2006 to 2019, according to a study published online July 12 in the Annals of Internal Medicine<\/em>.<\/em><\/p>\n Javier A. Cepeda, Ph.D., from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, and colleagues conducted a community-based, longitudinal cohort study involving 1,323 PWID who were chronically infected with HCV to examine access to all oral HCV treatments and liver disease burden and mortality.<\/p>\n The researchers found that from 2006 to 2019, there was a decrease in the proportion in whom HCV RNA was detected, from 100 to 48 percent. There was a corresponding increase in self-reported treatment, from 3 percent in 2014 to 39 percent in 2019. Across 10,350 valid liver stiffness measures, cirrhosis was detected in 15, 19, and 8 percent of participants in 2006, 2015, and 2019, respectively. There was a significant association seen for undetectable HCV RNA with reduced odds of cirrhosis (adjusted odds ratio, 0.28) and all-cause mortality risk (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.54).<\/p>\n “With continued testing, treatment, and interventions to strengthen linkage to care and prevent HCV transmission, elimination of HCV infection could be achieved within the next decade,” the authors write.<\/p>\n Abstract\/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)<\/a><\/p>\n <\/i><\/p>\n