Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initiatives to prevent hepatitis C virus infection: a selective update.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a complex public health problem, characterized by a high prevalence of chronic infection, an increasing burden of HCV-associated disease, low rates of testing and treatment, and the prospect of increasing incidence associated with the epidemic of injection drug use. Three-quarters of chronic HCV infections occur among persons born from 1945 through 1965. Prevention efforts are complicated by limited knowledge among health care professionals, persons at risk and in the public at large. At the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, efforts to improve primary and secondary prevention effectiveness center on policy development, education and training initiatives, and applied research. This report provides a brief overview of some of these efforts, including the development of testing recommendations for the 1945-1965 birth cohort, research and evaluation studies in settings where persons who inject drugs receive services, and a national viral hepatitis education campaign that targets health care professionals, the public, and persons at risk.
Division of Viral Hepatitis, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA.
Bryce D
BD
Smith
Cynthia
C
Jorgensen
Jon E
JE
Zibbell
Geoff A
GA
Beckett
D002487:Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000592:standards*; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000592:standards; D006287:Health Planning Guidelines; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D009313:National Health Programs / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000592:standards; D015995:Prevalence; D011314:Preventive Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000592:standards*; D012307:Risk Factors; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000821:virology; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology