Characteristics of hepatitis C virus among intravenous drug users in Iceland

• Published in: American journal of epidemiology Vol. 143; no. 6; pp. 631 - 636
• Main Authors: LÖVE, A, SIGURDSSON, J. R, STANZEIT, B, BRIEM, H, RIKARDSDOTTIR, H, WIDELL, A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cary, NC Oxford University Press 15.03.1996
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Base Sequence; Biological and medical sciences; Female; Folkhälsovetenskap, global hälsa, socialmedicin och epidemiologi; Genotype; Health Sciences; Hepacivirus - isolation & purification; Hepatitis C - epidemiology; hepatitis C virus; Human viral diseases; Humans; Hälsovetenskap; Iceland - epidemiology; Infectious diseases; Male; Medical and Health Sciences; Medical sciences; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Middle Aged; Molecular Sequence Data; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Public Health, Global Health, Social Medicine and Epidemiology; RNA, Viral - blood; Sex Factors; Substance Abuse, Intravenous - virology; Viral diseases; Viral hepatitis; Atlantic Ocean Islands; Iceland; Infection; Human; Drug addiction; Intravenous administration; Viral disease; Sex; Digestive diseases; Hepatic disease; Genotype; Epidemiology; Public health; Viral hepatitis C
• ISSN: 0002-9262; 1476-6256
• DOI: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008793

According to antibody analysis, approximately two of every three intravenous drug users in Iceland have become infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). In this study, serum samples from 55 HCV antibody-positive intravenous drug users (39 males and 16 females) were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction, and the viral strains were grouped into genotypes. Only three genotypes--1a, 3a, and 1b--were found among the drug users. Of 40 persons who were positive by polymerase chain reaction, 23 (57.5%) had type 1a, 15 (37.5%) had type 3a, and one (2.5%) had type 1b. One serum sample was untypeable. HCV viral RNA was detectable in 84.6% of the males and 43.7% of the females, which is a significant difference between the sexes (p < 0.01). In addition, 41 randomly selected HCV antibody-positive intravenous drug users (17 males and 24 females) were tested for HCV viral RNA with a commercially available polymerase chain reaction technique. In this subset of drug users, 76.4% of the males and 33.3% of the females had detectable HCV RNA in their serum, which is also a significant sex difference (p < 0.01). This study shows that two HCV genotypes predominate among intravenous drug users in Iceland, and the results indicate that women eliminate virus more effectively than men.