Improve screening of HCV infection by targeting high prevalence aged groups: analysis of a cohort of HCV and HIV co‐infected patients

Introduction Hepatitis C constitutes a major public health burden. In Portugal, the prevalence is estimated at 1–1.5% [1]. Of these, only 30% are presumed to be diagnosed, which reveals that most infections go unknown. The objective of this study is to identify the age‐range distribution at HCV diagnosis and to identify the high‐prevalence birth groups that could be targeted for screening, as a strategy to increase diagnosis and identify patients who would benefit most from treatment. Methods Retrospective observational study of a cohort of chronic HCV‐infected and HIV co‐infected patients followed at an Infectious Diseases Center, diagnosed between 1979 and 2014 (Figure 1). Hepatic fibrosis evaluation was performed by real time elastography using METAVIR score. Epidemiological, demographic, clinical, virological and therapeutic data was retrieved from clinical registries. Statistical analysis was performed using Microsoft Excel 2010®. Chi2, Student T were used for a significant p value of