Hepatitis C

Before HCV screening of blood and blood-products was introduced in 1992, transfusions accounted for a large proportion of infections. Today, most infections are associated with injection drug use (IDU). HCV can also be spread during childbirth and through sexual exposure, but both routes of transmission are uncommon.

Approximately 5% of HCV positive women transmit the virus to their infant. HCV does not spread readily through sexual activity and is more likely to occur by this route in men who have sex with men. Approximately 75-95% of newly infected persons are asymptomatic. As a result, most people with chronic infection are unaware that they have HCV.

Although treatment for chronic hepatitis C infections is available, no post-exposure prophylaxis regimen is available to prevent infection. There are an estimated 3.2 million chronically infected persons in the United States.

The prevalence of chronic hepatitis C infection is the highest among persons born during 1945-1965. Seventy-five to 85% of people who get infected with hepatitis C virus will become chronic carriers (chronic infection). Sixty to 70% of people with chronic infection will develop chronic liver disease. About 20% of persons with chronic hepatitis C will develop serious liver problems including cirrhosis and liver cancer 20 to 30 years after becoming infected.