title: Hepatitis C virus infection: review and implications for the orthopedic surgeon.
abstract: Hepatitis C virus (HCV), a single-stranded ribonucleic acid virus identified in 1989, is estimated to have infected 1%-2% of the United States population. The incidence of HCV in patients requiring orthopedic surgery may be as high as 5%. Surgeons and operating room personnel are at risk for blood-borne diseases transmitted during surgery. The orthopedic surgeon must be aware of viral infection with this pathogen for the safety of the entire operating room team. Further, screening for HCV is routinely done when a patient donates autologous blood prior to elective surgery, and the orthopedic surgeon is often the first or only physician informed of a positive result. The surgeon should know how to interpret the result, advise the patient, and incorporate the diagnosis of HCV into the plan for the proposed surgery. We will review the natural history, transmission, evaluation of, and current treatment for infection with this blood-borne virus.
authors.affiliation: Maine Joint Replacement Institute, Orthopaedic Associates of Portland, USA.
authors.forename: B J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: McGrory
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Kilby
mesh_terms: D001804:Blood Transfusion, Autologous; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications* / Q000635:transmission; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery; D019637:Orthopedic Procedures