Global epidemiology of hepatitis C virus infection: New... : Hepatology (original) (raw)

Viral Hepatitis

Global epidemiology of hepatitis C virus infection: New estimates of age-specific antibody to HCV seroprevalence

Mohd Hanafiah, Khayriyyah1; Groeger, Justina2; Flaxman, Abraham D.3; Wiersma, Steven T.4,*

1_Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD_

2_Division of Viral Hepatitis, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA_

3_Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, WA_

4_Global Hepatitis Programme, World Health Organization (WHO), Geneva, Switzerland_

*Center for Global Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2448 Luthuli Road-NIMR Complex, P.O. Box 9123 Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Email:[email protected]

View this article online atwileyonlinelibrary.com.

Potential conflict of interest: Nothing to report.

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Abstract

In efforts to inform public health decision makers, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors 2010 (GBD2010) Study aims to estimate the burden of disease using available parameters. This study was conducted to collect and analyze available prevalence data to be used for estimating the hepatitis C virus (HCV) burden of disease. In this systematic review, antibody to HCV (anti-HCV) seroprevalence data from 232 articles were pooled to estimate age-specific seroprevalence curves in 1990 and 2005, and to produce age-standardized prevalence estimates for each of 21 GBD regions using a model-based meta-analysis. This review finds that globally the prevalence and number of people with anti-HCV has increased from 2.3% (95% uncertainty interval [UI]: 2.1%-2.5%) to 2.8% (95% UI: 2.6%-3.1%) and >122 million to >185 million between 1990 and 2005. Central and East Asia and North Africa/Middle East are estimated to have high prevalence (>3.5%); South and Southeast Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, Andean, Central, and Southern Latin America, Caribbean, Oceania, Australasia, and Central, Eastern, and Western Europe have moderate prevalence (1.5%-3.5%); whereas Asia Pacific, Tropical Latin America, and North America have low prevalence (<1.5%). Conclusion : The high prevalence of global HCV infection necessitates renewed efforts in primary prevention, including vaccine development, as well as new approaches to secondary and tertiary prevention to reduce the burden of chronic liver disease and to improve survival for those who already have evidence of liver disease.

Copyright © 2013 American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

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