Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 25, 2026

Comprehensive & Cost Effective Laboratory Monitoring of HIV/AIDS: an African Role Model
Published on: October 31, 2010
Cost-effectiveness of harm reduction in preventing hepatitis C among injection drug users
1Department of Health Management and Policy, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor 48109-2029, USA. haroldp@sph.umich.edu
Objectives:
Hepatitis C (HCV) has emerged as a major epidemic among injection drug users (IDUs), with observed prevalence exceeding 70% in many American and European cities. This article explores the potential of syringe exchange programs (SEPs) to reduce HCV incidence and prevalence.
Design:
A random-mixing epidemiological model is used to examine the potential impact of harm reduction interventions.
Methods:
Steady-state analysis is used to scrutinize the impact of SEP on HCV incidence and prevalence and to examine the accuracy of short-term incidence analysis in predicting long-run program effects.
Results:
SEP is predicted to have little impact on HCV incidence and prevalence within realistic populations of IDUs.
Conclusions:
Short-term incidence analysis substantially overstates SEP effectiveness and cost-effectiveness in preventing HCV. More comprehensive harm reduction models, coupled with referral of active IDUs to treatment, must complement syringe exchange to successfully contain highly infectious blood-borne diseases.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Retrovirus Life Cycles
Healthcare Associated Infections II: Preventive Measures
The best practices for preventing healthcare-associated infections include hand hygiene, patient risk...
Effect of Hepatic Disease on Pharmacokinetics: Drug Dosing and Hepatic Blood Flow
Effect of Hepatic Disease on Pharmacokinetics: Pathophysiologic Assessment and Liver Function Test
Effect of Hepatic Disease on Pharmacokinetics: Dose Adjustments Due to Hepatic Impairment
Hepatitis

