Friday, May 4, 2018

HCV Infection in Teens on the Rise - Second-wave epidemic

AGA Reading Room
05.03.2018

HCV Infection in Teens on the Rise
Second-wave epidemic
by Pippa Wysong
Contributing Writer, MedPage Today
The prevalence of HCV infection in children and adolescents has been reported to vary from 0.05% to 0.36% in the United States and Europe, to 1.8% to 5.8% in some developing countries -- and even that might be low.

According to a review published in Hepatology Communications, the six genotypes seen in adults have been identified in children, with similar global geographic distribution as adults -- but that like adults, the younger cohort in the U.S. tend to have genotypes 1 through 3.

The paper notes that while HCV infection in younger children tends to be from vertical transmission from HCV-infected mothers, in adolescents it is increasingly linked to intravenous drug abuse. In fact, one study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a 364% increase in HCV infection among people ages 12 to 29 living in the Appalachian region of the U.S. between the years 2006 to 2012.
Full article @ MedPage Today

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