Eighteen- to 30-year-olds more likely to link to hepatitis C virus care: an opportunity to decrease transmission

Area of Science:

• Hepatology
• Infectious Diseases
• Public Health

Background:

• Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection incidence is rising among young adults (18-30 years).
• Current guidelines recommend treating active injection drug users to curb HCV transmission.
• Linkage to HCV care in this demographic is crucial for public health interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To measure linkage to HCV care among 18- to 30-year-olds.
• To identify factors associated with linkage to HCV care in this age group.
• To compare HCV care linkage rates between younger (18-30) and older (>30) patient cohorts.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective cohort study utilizing electronic medical records from an urban safety net hospital (2005-2010).
• Inclusion criteria: reactive HCV antibody test.
• Multivariable logistic regression analysis to determine factors associated with linkage, defined as HCV RNA testing post-antibody detection.

Main Results:

• A total of 32,418 individuals were tested; 8,873 were aged 18-30.
• The HCV seropositivity rate in the 18-30 age group was 10%.
• Factors associated with higher linkage odds in 18-30 year olds included outpatient diagnosis location and increased number of post-diagnosis visits. This age group demonstrated higher linkage rates compared to older patients, even after controlling for covariates.

Conclusions:

• Younger adults (18-30) exhibit a higher likelihood of linking to HCV care compared to older populations.
• Targeted interventions focusing on diagnosis location and follow-up visits can enhance HCV care linkage in young adults.
• The current interferon-free treatment era offers a significant opportunity to prevent further HCV transmission by effectively treating this younger demographic.