title: Clinical epidemiology of acute hepatitis C in South America.
abstract: There is scarce data pertaining to acute hepatitis C (aHC) infection in South America. We aimed to describe clinical characteristics and evolution of aHC in a South American cohort. A retrospective survey was conducted at 13 hepatology units. All patients ≥16 years old with aHC diagnosis were included. Demographic, clinical and outcome information were registered in a standardized ad hoc questionnaire. Sixty-four patients were included. The majority were middle-aged (median age: 46 years) and female (65.6%); most of them were symptomatic at diagnosis (79.6%). HCV-1 was the most prevalent genotype (69.2%). Five patients had liver failure: three cases of severe acute hepatitis, one case of fulminant hepatitis and one case of acute-on-chronic liver failure. Nosocomial exposure was the most prevalent risk factor. Evolution was assessed in 46 patients. In the untreated cohort, spontaneous resolution occurred in 45.8% and was associated with higher values of AST/ALT and with the absence of intermittent HCV RNA viremia (P = 0.01, 0.05, and 0.01, respectively). In the treated cohort, sustained virological response was associated with nosocomial transmission and early treatment initiation (P = 0.04 each). The prevalence of nosocomial transmission in this South-American cohort of aHC stresses the importance of following universal precautions to prevent HCV infection. J. Med. Virol. 89:276-283, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
authors.affiliation: Hepatopatías Infecciosas, Hospital F.J. Muñiz, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Melisa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dirchwolf
authors.affiliation: Liver Unit, Hospital Italiano de Buenos, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Sebastián
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Marciano
authors.affiliation: Liver Unit, Hospital Italiano de Buenos, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Ezequiel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mauro
authors.affiliation: Fundación para la Docencia e Investigación de las Enfermedades del Hígado (FUNDIEH), Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Andrés Eduardo
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Ruf
authors.affiliation: Hepatología, Hospital de la Asociación Médica Dr. Felipe Glasman, Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Lucrecia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rezzonico
authors.affiliation: Unidad de Hepatología y Trasplante Hepático, Hospital Alemán, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Margarita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Anders
authors.affiliation: Hospital de Clínicas, Facultad de Medicina, UDELAR, Montevideo, Uruguay.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chiodi
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Gastroenterología y Hepatología, Hospital Central del Instituto de Previsión Social de Asunción, Paraguay.
authors.forename: Néstor Gill
authors.initials: NG
authors.lastname: Petta
authors.affiliation: Sección Hepatología, HIGA Prof. Dr. Rodolfo Rossi, La Plata Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Borzi
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Hepatología y Gastroenterología, Hospital Provincial del Centenario de Rosario, Argentina.
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tanno
authors.affiliation: Sección Hepatología, Centro de Educación Médica e Investigaciones Clínicas Norberto Quirno "CEMIC", Unidad de Hepatología y Trasplante Hepático, Hospital Universitario Austral, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Ezequiel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ridruejo
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Microbiología, Facultad de Química y Ciencias Naturales Universidad de Misiones, Posadas, Argentina.
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Barreyro
authors.affiliation: Hepatología. Hospital Tornú, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Carolina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Shulman
authors.affiliation: Gastroenterología y Hepatología, Salta Capital, Argentina.
authors.forename: Pablo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Plaza
authors.affiliation: Gastroenterología y Hepatología, Hospital de Clínicas Nicolás Avellaneda, Tucumán, Argentina.
authors.forename: Rodolfo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Carbonetti
authors.affiliation: Unidad de Virología, Hospital F.J. Muñiz, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Luciana
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tadey
authors.affiliation: Hepatopatías Infecciosas, Hospital F.J. Muñiz, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Schroder
authors.affiliation: Hepatopatías Infecciosas, Hospital F.J. Muñiz, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fainboim
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases / Q000097:blood; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000635:transmission; D018562:Disease Transmission, Infectious; D005260:Female; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000635:transmission; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013020:South America / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014766:Viremia; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases; D000410:Alanine Transaminase
keywords: Latin America; epidemiology; hepatitis C virus; nosocomial transmission