Update on epidemiology of HCV in Italy: focus on the Calabria Region
نویسندگان
چکیده
The epidemiological profile of HCV infection is evolving in Europe, as well as in Italy. We have previously showed genotype distributions and their dynamics in 2,153 HCV RNA positive patients living in Calabria, Southern Italy, over 11 years. In this study, we extend and update this information by evaluating a hospital-based cohort of 945 HCV RNA positive patients attending five hospitals in the Calabria Region from January 2011 to August 2013. We assessed rates of HCV genotypes according to age and gender and the dynamics of HCV genotype distribution over the 3-year period studied. Data showed that genotype 1b is the most prevalent, followed by subtypes 2a/2c and genotype 3. Genotype 4 exhibited an increase between 2011 and 2013. Also, we found a significant decrease in the median age of subjects infected with HCV genotype 3 and 4 during the period studied. Since HCV genotypes are important in epidemiology, pathogenesis and response to antiviral therapy, a continuous epidemiological surveillance is needed.
منابع مشابه
Epidemiological features and specificities of HCV infection: a hospital-based cohort study in a university medical center of Calabria region
The epidemiological status of HCV in Europe, and in particular in Mediterranean countries, is continuously evolving. The genotype distribution is related to improvement of healthcare conditions, expansion of intravenous drug use and immigration. We review and characterize the epidemiology of the distribution of HCV genotypes within Calabria, an area of Southern Italy. We focus on the pattern of...
متن کاملPredictors of Intravenous Immunoglobulin (IVIG) Resistance in Children with Kawasaki Disease in Calabria Region, Italy
Background Kawasaki disease (KD) is the second most common childhood vasculitis and one of the main causes of acquired heart disease in children. Recent work focuses on the early diagnostic importance of those risk factors that indicate resistance to intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) treatment. The objectives of this study were to identify clinical, laboratory and/or instrumental factors that c...
متن کاملUpdate on HCV genotypes among Iranian blood donors
Abstract Background and Objectives Hepatitis C (HCV) infection is one of the main causes of chronic hepatitis diseases all over the world. HCV is a transfusion transmitted virus and a serious threat to general health. HCV genotyping has an important role in tracing routes of infection. This study aimed at investigating the changes in distribution pattern of HCV genotypes among Iranian blood d...
متن کاملDemographical, Viro-Immunological, Clinical and Therapeutical Characteristics of HIV-Infected Patients in an “Epidemiologically Unexplored” Region of Italy (Calabria Region): the CalabrHIV Cohort
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES HIV epidemics may differ among epidemiological contexts. We aimed at constructing an HIV clinical cohort whose main epidemiological, clinical and therapeutical characteristics are described (the CalabrHIV cohort, Calabria Region, Southern Italy). METHODS The CalabrHIV Cohort includes all HIV patients on active follow-up in all infectious disease centers in the Calabr...
متن کاملFood Losses and Waste: A Global Overview with a Focus on Near East and North Africa Region
Food losses refer to edible food mass decrease throughout the human food chain. Food losses occurring at consumption stage are called food waste. Food Losses and Waste (FLW) represent one of the most critical social, economic and ecological challenges facing humanity, besides being also an ethical issue. FAO data show that roughly one-third of food produced for human consumption is lost or wast...
متن کامل