Ferreira Priscilla Martins, Guimarães Rafael Alves, Souza Christiane Moreira, Guimarães Lara Cristina da Cunha, Barros Cleiciane Vieira de Lima, Caetano Karlla Antonieta Amorim, Rezza Giovanni, Spadoni Lila, Brunini Sandra Maria
Faculty of Nursing, Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil.
University of the Federal District, Brasília, Brazil.
BMC Public Health. 2017 Jan 18;17(1):90. doi: 10.1186/s12889-016-3952-6.
Homeless men are highly vulnerable to acquisition of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) compared to the general population. In Brazil, a country of continental dimensions, the extent of HCV infection in this population remains unknown. The objective of this study is to investigate the epidemiological profile of exposure to HCV in homeless men in Central Brazil.
A Cross-sectional study was conducted in 481 men aged over 18 years attending therapeutic communities specialized in the recovery and reintegration of homeless people. Participants were tested for anti-HCV markers using rapid tests. Poisson regression analysis was used to verify the risk factors associated with exposure to HCV.
The prevalence of HCV exposure was 2.5% (95.0% CI: 1.4 to 4.3%) and was associated with age, absence of family life, injection drug use, number of sexual partners, and history of sexually transmitted infections (STI). Participants reported multiple risk behaviors, such as alcohol (78.9%), cocaine (37.1%) and/or crack use (53.1%), and inconsistent condom use (82.6%). Injection drug use was reported by 8.7% of participants.
The prevalence of HCV infection among homeless men was relatively high. Several risk behaviors were commonly reported, which shows the high vulnerability of this population. These findings emphasize the need for the development of specific strategies to reduce the risk of HCV among homeless men.
与普通人群相比，无家可归男性感染丙型肝炎病毒（HCV）的风险极高。在地域广阔的巴西，这一人群中HCV感染的程度尚不清楚。本研究的目的是调查巴西中部无家可归男性HCV暴露的流行病学特征。
对481名年龄超过18岁、在专门帮助无家可归者康复和重新融入社会的治疗社区接受治疗的男性进行了一项横断面研究。使用快速检测法对参与者进行抗HCV标志物检测。采用泊松回归分析来验证与HCV暴露相关的风险因素。
HCV暴露的患病率为2.5%（95.0%CI：1.4%至4.3%），且与年龄、无家庭生活、注射吸毒、性伴侣数量以及性传播感染（STI）病史有关。参与者报告了多种风险行为，如饮酒（78.9%）、使用可卡因（37.1%）和/或快克（53.1%），以及不坚持使用避孕套（82.6%）。8.7%的参与者报告有注射吸毒行为。
无家可归男性中HCV感染的患病率相对较高。报告了几种常见的风险行为，这表明该人群的高易感性。这些发现强调需要制定具体策略以降低无家可归男性感染HCV的风险。
