%0 Journal Article
%A Avramovic, Gordana
%A Oprea, Cristiana
%A Surey, Julian
%A Story, Alistair
%A Macías, Juan
%A Cullen, Walter
%A Iglesias, Maria
%A Mc Hugh, Tina
%A Crowley, Des
%A Naughton, Anna Marie
%A Horan, Aidan
%A Ianache, Irina
%A Lazar, Stefan
%A Popa, Ionut
%A Menezes, Dee
%A Lambert, John S
%T HepCare Europe-A service innovation project. HepCheck: Characteristics of the patient population with active infection as defined by HCV RNA.
%D 2019
%U https://hdl.handle.net/10668/27115
%X Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a main cause of chronic liver disease worldwide and is consistently under-diagnosed. Community-based screening initiatives, such as HepCheck, have been identified as important components of HCV care. HepCheck focuses on screening and identifying HCV RNA-positive cases in high-risk populations and linking them to care as part of a larger European project to improve HCV care (HepCare). HCV testing with a self-administered questionnaire was offered to 2822 individuals. There were 2079 patients screened. Overall, 397 (19%) of the total screened cohort were identified as having active HCV infections as measured by HCV RNA PCR. The patients were mostly male (84%), white (88%), and had a history of injecting drug use (IDU) (86%), homelessness (58%), and tattooing (42%). There were 136 new cases (7% of the total sample and 34% of identified active infections). Romania had the highest proportion of newly identified cases with 87%, then Ireland with 60%, and Spain with 43%; the UK had the lowest proportion of new cases at 10%. For those lost to follow-up, a major strategy is re-engagement. For those newly diagnosed, the 'seek and treat' approach is a key strategy. Thus, different priorities are defined for different countries.
%K Hepatitis C
%K Homeless
%K Integrated HCV care
%K People who inject drugs (PWID)
%K Prisoners
%K Screening
%K Vulnerable populations
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