Call back program expands reach, links more patients with chronic HCV infection to care
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A call back system in Taiwan helped retrieve patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection who were lost to follow-up and has the potential to boost micro-elimination efforts, according to research in BMC Gastroenterology.
“Due to the scale and complexity of HCV elimination, EASL proposes a ‘micro-elimination’ approach which focuses and treats different populations and at-risk groups,” Cheng-Jen Chen, of the division of hepato-gastroenterology at Lin Kou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taiwan, and colleagues wrote. “Other than the initial recognized target groups of micro-elimination, such as prisoners, children and/or hemophilia patients, the previous diagnosed HCV patients lost to follow-up were also considered as an important target group for HCV micro-elimination.”
Using electronic health records, Chen and colleagues identified 31,275 patients who were seropositive to HCV antibody from 2004 to 2017 and included 11,934 patients in their call back program. After contacting those patients via telephone and inquiring about interest in treating their chronic HCV infection, researchers determined 1,277 were eligible for retrieval and further evaluation and treatment.
According to analysis, 44.1% of those patients returned to the gastroenterology unit at Lin Kou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. Of these, 62.9% tested positive for HCV viremia and 91.2% underwent direct-acting antiviral treatment. The overall sustained virological response rate at 12 weeks (SVR12) was 98.1%.
Factors that influenced patients’ decision to return to the hospital for follow-up care included age (< 55 years) and residence and the physician who ordered their HCV test.
“Call back systems can expand our reach to those unaware or ignoring chronic HCV infection and link them to treatment, resulting in improving the goal of HCV micro-elimination,” Chen and colleagues concluded.
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