Hepatitis C Virus Antibody Positivity in the Population Born Between 1945 to 1965: An Evaluation of the United States Preventive Services Task Force and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Recommendations

Abstract

Introduction: In January 2013, after performing a systemic review of screening for hepatitis C virus infection in adults in the United States, the United States Preventive Services Task Force issued a grade B recommendation for the screening of persons at high risk for infection and adults in the birth cohort between 1945 and 1965. The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy and importance of the recommendations put forth by the United States Preventive Services Task Force regarding the screening of adults in the birth cohort born between 1945 and 1965.Table 2: Comparison of Data CollectedTable 1: Population CharacteristicsMethods: A retrospective observational study of adults in the United States living in an urban metro area was performed. Following the recommendations of the USPSTF, adults in the birth cohort born between 1945 and 1965 were screened for hepatitis C virus infection. Blood was drawn from those adults and tested for the hepatitis C virus antibody. Patient's demographic characteristics were collected. We calculated the prevalence of adults in the birth cohort that tested positive for the antibody, and compared the data to the studies used by the USPSTF in their recommendations. Results: Overall, 1025 patients met the criteria for screening and were tested for hepatitis C virus antibody, of which 20 tested positive for the hepatitis C virus antibody. This yielded a prevalence of 1.95% (95% CI, 1.13-2.77), and a number needed to screen of 51.25. There were no statistical differences seen in prevalence (P = 0.37) or number needed to screen (P = 0.15) when compared to the study performed in 2006, nor were there any differences seen in specific demographics. Conclusion: The study validated the recommendations set forth by the United States Preventive Services Task Force along with confirming the findings of previous studies of increased prevalence in the birth cohort of adults born between 1945 and 1965. Despite not showing a difference (P = 0.37) when comparing the higher prevalence seen in our study, it did confirm a higher prevalence of hepatitis C antibody positivity in this birth cohort. This confirmatory study expresses the importance in identifying a specific cohort of people with increased prevalence for hepatitis C virus infection in order to reduce the associated morbidity and mortality associated with the infection, along with the importance of confirmatory studies.