Hepatitis C News

Hepatic steatosis progressed faster and was more often associated with liber fibrosis progression among patients with HIV mono-infection compared with patients with HIV/hepatitis C coinfection, according to recently published data from an ongoing cohort study.

Hepatitis Awareness Month and Hepatitis Testing Day are observed annually in May to raise awareness of the disease and encourage clinicians to test priority populations.

To mark Hepatitis Testing Day on May 19, two physicians’ organizations are directing clinicians to the CDC’s newest guide to hepatitis C virus testing.

May 19 is the sixth annual National Hepatitis C Testing Day, a part of Hepatitis C Awareness Month. According to the CDC, many people live with chronic hepatitis for decades without symptoms and may be unaware of having the infection. The CDC encourages health care providers to educate patients about HCV and viral hepatitis testing.

Patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis without hepatitis who were seropositive for hepatitis B core antibody only or hepatitis C infection, and who were being treated with biologic therapies, had minimal or no risk for viral reactivation, according to study results recently published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

Harvoni, a fixed-dose combination of ledipasvir and sofosbuvir, safely and effectively treated hepatitis C virus infection in patients with sickle cell disease, according to findings from a small study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Generic direct-acting antivirals for hepatitis C virus may not only be cost effective, but save money over 10 years compared with management of the virus, according to a recently published model.

Results of a retrospective analysis showed histologic changes associated with active hepatitis C in patients who had achieved sustained virologic response following liver transplantation for chronic HCV.

CHICAGO — In this exclusive video from Digestive Disease Week, Norah Terrault, MD, MPH, discusses the topics reviewed during a press conference involving several experts attending the meeting. Some of the key features of the meeting included new developments for treating hepatitis C, new data emerging on difficult to treat groups such as persons who inject drugs, and the industry’s focus on fatty liver disease.

The number of hepatitis C virus infections reported yearly in the United States has tripled since 2010, reaching a 15-year high, according to the CDC.