title: Hepatitis C virus infection: opportunities for an earlier detection in primary care.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In the era of direct-acting antiviral medications, which can cure the hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, the actual epidemiology of this condition in the general population is still unclear. We therefore aimed to estimate the prevalence rate of HCV and assess the determinants for incident cases of HCV in primary care in Italy.
  
  
  METHODS
  We identified outpatients aged at least 15 years registered in the Italian Health Search IMS Health Longitudinal Patient Database from 1 January 2002 to 30 June 2013. The annual trend of HCV prevalence was estimated. The candidate determinants for the risk of incident HCV infection included geographical area of residence, sex, age, infections by the HIV, hepatitis B virus (HBV), or other forms of hepatitis, and abuse of illicit substances or drugs.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The eligible cohort included 826 300 patients (53.5% women, mean age 48.1±19.1 years). The prevalence rate of HCV increased over the 11-year study period, ranging from 0.24 to 0.50%, with a small increase in men versus women. Patients aged more than 24 years had a higher risk than those aged 14-24 years, with up to a five-fold increase among patients aged 65-74 years. Being resident of Southern/Islands Italy, concurrent diagnosis HBV or HIV, and drug or illicit substance abuse were significant determinants for HCV infection.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study shows that the prevalence of HCV in Italy has doubled over the last decade. Patients with certain demographics and clinical characteristics are more prone to be infected by HCV. In this scenario, general practitioners may play a crucial role in screening, early identification, and therapy of high-risk patients.
authors.affiliation: aHealth Search, Italian College of General Practitioners and Primary Care bItalian College of General Practitioners and Primary Care cInfectious Disease Unit, Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence School of Medicine, Florence dDepartment of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa eUnit of Adverse Drug Reactions Monitoring, University Hospital of Pisa, Pisa fDepartment of Systems Medicine gHepatology Unit, Department of Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lapi
authors.forename: Alice
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Capogrosso Sansone
authors.forename: Stefania
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mantarro
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Simonetti
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tuccori
authors.forename: Corrado
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Blandizzi
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.forename: Giampaolo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Corti
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bartoloni
authors.forename: Alfonso
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bellia
authors.forename: Leonardo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Baiocchi
authors.forename: Iacopo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Cricelli
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cricelli
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016208:Databases, Factual; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010819:Physician's Role; D058007:Physicians, Primary Care; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015995:Prevalence; D011320:Primary Health Care; D012307:Risk Factors; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult