HEPATOLOGY Concise Review come apparent because of improved diagnostic techniques
Hepatitis C Virus: Epidemiology and physicians' awareness to the possibility of therapeutic intervention. This short review will focus on selected aspects and Transmission of the epidemiology and modes of transmission of HCV.
MODES OF TRANSMISSION
TOBIAS HEINTGES AND JACK R. WANDS
HCV is generally transmitted by the parenteral route. Well known and common modes of transmission involve transfu-Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is an RNA virus with a genomic size of 9.6 kb. More than 50% of individuals exposed to HCV sions and/or parenteral contact with blood products. 1 However, up to 50% of individuals deny exposure to any of these develop chronic infection. Of those individuals chronically infected, approximately 20% to 30% will develop liver cirrho-known risk factors, and infection is often designated as ''community acquired.'' 1 Before the initiation of HCV antibody sis and/or hepatocellular carcinoma when followed for twenty to thirty years. Methods to identify HCV include a screening, approximately 10% to 20% of individuals, who had received multiple blood transfusions or plasma products, highly sensitive third generation immunoassay that detects antibodies to structural and nonstructural proteins in serum. seroconverted to anti-HCV positive. Thus, the relative risk was 0.45% per unit transfused. 2,3 However, the introduction Viremia may be detected by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technology. The role of HCV of routine HCV antibody screening of blood products has led to a sharp decrease in the transmission rate of HCV. For infection in acute and chronic liver disease has recently be FIG. 1. World map illustrating the prevalence of HCV antibodies in blood donors as measured by second or third generation assays. 35,[38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50]57,74,[85][86][87][88][89][90][91][92][93][94][95] Abbreviations: HCV, hepatitis C virus; HIV, human immunodeficiency virus.