Hepatitis C Bigger Killer than HIV

More Americans now die from hepatitis C infection than from HIV, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.

One possible step forward would be a change in screening policy for hepatitis C, according to David Rein, PhD, of the social science research organization NORC at the University of Chicago in Atlanta, and colleagues.

Currently, the CDC recommends antibody screening for people with such risk factors or indicators as a history of injection-drug use or elevated alanine aminotransferase levels.Depending on the form of subsequent treatment, the screening would prevent between 82,300 and 121,000 deaths, with an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio per quality-adjusted life year gained ranged from $15,700 to $35,700, Rein and colleagues calculated.

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Source: MedPage Today