Hepatitis C screening in hospitals: find the missing patients

Area of Science:

• Hepatology
• Infectious Diseases
• Public Health

Background:

• Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of liver cancer, posing significant economic and social burdens.
• Despite government recommendations for routine inpatient screening to prevent iatrogenic infections, diagnosis and treatment rates for HCV remain low in China.
• This study aimed to analyze routine inpatient screening data to understand HCV prevalence across different regions of China.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the prevalence of Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among hospitalized patients in China.
• To compare HCV-positivity rates across different geographical regions and age groups within the inpatient population.
• To inform public health strategies for HCV screening and elimination in China.

Main Methods:

• Data on inpatient information and HCV screening results were collected from January 2016 to December 2016.
• Eight tertiary hospitals across different regions of China participated in the data collection.
• Analysis focused on comparing HCV-positivity rates among different regions and age demographics.

Main Results:

• The overall HCV antibody (anti-HCV)-positive rate among 467,008 inpatients was 0.88%.
• HCV-positivity was higher in males (0.91%) compared to females (0.85%) and increased with age, peaking in the 60-64 year age group.
• A significant majority (90.14%) of anti-HCV seropositive patients were 40 years of age or older, suggesting a targeted screening approach.

Conclusions:

• Routine inpatient screening plays a crucial role in identifying Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections.
• A screening strategy targeting inpatients aged 40 and above is a cost-effective method to identify undiagnosed HCV cases.
• Implementing these strategies can accelerate HCV elimination efforts in China by reaching unaware patient populations.