The Changing Epidemiology of Hepatitis C Virus Infection in the United States During the Years 2010 to 2018

Overview

Journal Am J Public Health

Specialty Public Health

Date 2021 Mar 18

PMID 33734844

Citations 17

Authors

Deborah Holtzman

Alice K Asher

Sarah Schillie

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection remains an important cause of morbidity and mortality throughout the world, leading to serious health problems among those who are chronically infected. Since 1992, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been collecting data on the incidence of HCV infection in the United States. In 2018, more than 50 000 individuals were estimated to have acute HCV infection.The most recently reported data on the prevalence of infection indicate that approximately 2.4 million people are living with hepatitis C in the United States. Transmission of HCV occurs predominantly through sharing contaminated equipment for injecting drugs.Two major events have had a significant impact on the incidence and prevalence of hepatitis C in the past few decades: the US opioid crisis and the discovery of curative treatments for HCV infection. To better understand the impact of these events, we examine reported trends in the incidence and prevalence of infection.

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