Abstract
Hepatitis C virus infection is one of the main causes of chronic liver disease, with high death rates. The aim here was to analyze case outcomes, sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and spatial distribution among patients diagnosed with hepatitis C in the city of Santa Cruz do Sul (RS), Brazil. Cross-sectional study on 200 cases of hepatitis C in Santa Cruz do Sul that were notified between 2002 and 2015. Secondary data including sociodemographic and clinical variables and type of outcome (death, follow-up, abandonment or clinical cure) were gathered. The spatial distribution analysis on hepatitis C virus cases according to outcome was based on information regarding residential address. 58.5% of the patients were 41 years of age and over, 67% were males and 92.5% had the chronic form of the disease. The most frequent transmission route was illicit drug injection (29%); 15.1% of the patients presented coinfection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Regarding outcomes, 31% achieved clinical cure, 10% died and 20% abandoned follow-up. The cases studied were mainly located in regions of the city characterized by lower socioeconomic status, with high frequency of places used for drug trafficking. The population consisted of adults aged 41 years and over, mostly with chronic hepatitis C. The most common transmission routes were illicit drug injection and blood transfusions. There were high rates of HIV coinfection and abandonment of disease monitoring and predominance of cases in neighborhoods with low socioeconomic status.
Highlights
The hepatitis C virus (HCV) is one of the leading causes of chronic liver disease worldwide and is characterized as a silent disease that is difficult to identify in most patients.[1,2] Approximately 15%-45% of infected individuals spontaneously clear the virus within six months of infection without any treatment, and the remaining 55%-85% of them may progress to persistent chronic infection
In Brazil, the data show that the numbers of deaths due to HCV have been increasing over time in all regions
HCV infection was defined as the presence of HCV ribonucleic acid (HCV-RNA) and anti-HCV antibodies in serum or plasma.[1]
Summary
The hepatitis C virus (HCV) is one of the leading causes of chronic liver disease worldwide and is characterized as a silent disease that is difficult to identify in most patients.[1,2] Approximately 15%-45% of infected individuals spontaneously clear the virus within six months of infection without any treatment, and the remaining 55%-85% of them may progress to persistent chronic infection. In the state of Rio Grande do Sul (RS), this coefficient was 2.8/100,000 inhabitants, which was almost three times larger than the national mean for the same period.[1] The data on the extent and spatial distribution of HCV outcomes in the city of Santa Cruz do Sul (RS) is limited, which highlights the usefulness of the present study. Hepatitis C virus infection is one of the main causes of chronic liver disease, with high death rates. The aim here was to analyze case outcomes, sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and spatial distribution among patients diagnosed with hepatitis C in the city of Santa Cruz do Sul (RS), Brazil. The most frequent transmission route was illicit drug injection (29%); 15.1% of the patients presented coinfection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). There were high rates of HIV coinfection and abandonment of disease monitoring and predominance of cases in neighborhoods with low socioeconomic status
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