Absence of Active Hepatitis C Virus Infection in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Clinics in Zambia and Mozambique

Gilles Wandeler; Lloyd Mulenga; Michael Hobbins; Candido Joao; Edford Sinkala; Jonas Hector; Musa Aly; Benjamin H Chi; Matthias Egger; Michael J Vinikoor

doi:10.1093/ofid/ofw049

Absence of Active Hepatitis C Virus Infection in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Clinics in Zambia and Mozambique

Open Forum Infect Dis. 2016 Mar 2;3(2):ofw049. doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofw049. eCollection 2016 Mar.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Infectious Diseases, Bern University Hospital; Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Bern, Switzerland; Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Dakar, Senegal.
² School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Zambia, Lusaka; Department of Medicine, University Teaching Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia.
³ SolidarMed , Ancuabe, Mozambique, Lucerne , Switzerland.
⁴ Nucleo de Investigação Operacional, Pemba , Mozambique.
⁵ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology , University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
⁶ Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Bern, Switzerland; Centre for Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Research, University of Cape Town, South Africa.
⁷ School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Zambia, Lusaka; Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia; University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Abstract

Few studies have evaluated the prevalence of replicating hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in sub-Saharan Africa. Among 1812 individuals infected with human immunodeficiency virus, no patient in rural Mozambique and 4 patients in urban Zambia were positive for anti-HCV antibodies. Of these, none had confirmed HCV replication.

Keywords: HIV infection; hepatitis C infection; screening; sub-Saharan Africa.

Abstract

Grants and funding