Lee Hye Won, Lee Hankil, Kim Beom Kyung, Chang Young, Jang Jae Young, Kim Do Young
Department of Internal Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Institute of Gastroenterology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Clin Mol Hepatol. 2022 Apr;28(2):164-173. doi: 10.3350/cmh.2021.0193. Epub 2021 Dec 27.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is the second most common cause of chronic liver disease in South Korea, with a prevalence ranging from 0.6% to 0.8%, and HCV infection incidence increases with age. The anti-HCV antibody test, which is cheaper than the HCV RNA assay, is widely used to screen for HCV infections; however, the underdiagnosis of HCV is a major barrier to the elimination of HCV infections. Although several risk factors have been associated with HCV infections, including intravenous drug use, blood transfusions, and hemodialysis, most patients with HCV infections present with no identifiable risk factors. Universal screening for HCV in adults has been suggested to improve the detection of HCV infections. We reviewed the cost-effectiveness of HCV screening and the methodologies used to perform screening. Recent studies have suggested that universal HCV screening and treatment using direct-acting antivirals represent cost-effective approaches to the prevention and treatment of HCV infection. However, the optimal timing and frequency of HCV screening remain unclear, and further studies are necessary to determine the best approaches for the elimination of HCV infections.
丙型肝炎病毒（HCV）感染是韩国慢性肝病的第二大常见病因，患病率在0.6%至0.8%之间，且HCV感染发病率随年龄增长而上升。抗HCV抗体检测比HCV RNA检测便宜，被广泛用于筛查HCV感染；然而，HCV诊断不足是消除HCV感染的主要障碍。尽管有几个危险因素与HCV感染有关，包括静脉注射毒品、输血和血液透析，但大多数HCV感染患者并无可识别的危险因素。建议对成年人进行HCV普遍筛查以提高HCV感染的检测率。我们回顾了HCV筛查的成本效益以及用于进行筛查的方法。最近的研究表明，使用直接抗病毒药物进行HCV普遍筛查和治疗是预防和治疗HCV感染的具有成本效益的方法。然而，HCV筛查的最佳时机和频率仍不清楚，需要进一步研究以确定消除HCV感染的最佳方法。
