Viral Hepatitis News

Even before I came to the United States to start my internal medicine residency, I had discovered that my calling was a career in infectious diseases.

A new study provides the first evidence that illicit fentanyl use may play a role in hepatitis C transmission among injection drug users, according to researchers.

CMS included a new infectious disease consult add-on code as part of its proposed new fee schedule could help improve compensation for ID clinicians, according to the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

ID is a dynamic field that is constantly changing. The types of infections we’re talking about today are different than what we may have been talking about 5 years ago. So, it’s intellectually stimulating and challenging.

The FDA’s recent authorization of a rapid, point-of-care test to diagnose current hepatitis C virus infection is a major victory, but it would be malpractice to initiate same-day HCV treatment if a patient’s hepatitis B virus status is unknown.

Rather than telling a patient they should get a vaccine, the CDC’s shared clinical decision-making recommendations advise patients to speak to providers about certain vaccines and decide on an individual basis if they should receive them. 

A two-dose series of a hepatitis B vaccine with a CpG adjuvant resulted in a more than 90% response rate among health care workers previously classified as nonresponders, researchers found.

When it comes to screening perinatally exposed infants for hepatitis C virus, the earlier the better, a study showed.

SAN ANTONIO — We caught up with Connie Steed, MSN, RN, CIC, FAPIC, at the annual meeting of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology to find out how she got “Hooked on ID.”