Hepatitis C infection rates are running at far higher levels than previously thought, according to research published today.
The study of 5,000 pregnant women attending an antenatal clinic at St Mary's Hospital in London found that one in 10 women were infected by hepatitis C. Researchers were also surprised to find there was no significant risk factor identified in three quarters of infected women.
Published in the BMA specialist journal, Gut, the research found that women who had their ears pierced or had tattoos were twice as likely to be infected with hepatitis C as those who used intravenous drugs.
Hepatitis C is usually associated with intravenous drug abuse or contamination with infected blood products, such as occurred among haemophiliac patients, currently the subject of an inquiry by the Lindsay tribunal. The finding that two thirds of patients in the study were previously undiagnosed and that three quarters had no known risk factors for hepatitis C will cause doctors and scientists to view the disease in a new light.
In an accompanying editorial based on these findings, Dr William Rosenberg of the Liver Group at the University of Southampton says the prevalence of hepatitis C may be even higher than in this study.
"Such a high level of infection establishes hepatitis C as a major healthcare problem for the 21st century, and one that cannot be ignored".
This study challenges the previously held view that targeted testing for at-risk groups is sufficient to detect hepatitis C infection. Up to 80 per cent of those infected with hepatitis C will develop chronic disease which carries the risk of liver failure and liver cancer up to 30 years after initial infection.
The babies of pregnant women with hepatitis C are at an increased risk of infection also.
The research has significant implications for the Department of Health and the National Disease Surveillance Centre in this State.
At the very least, it suggests the need for a similar study among women attending antenatal clinics in the State's maternity hospitals. Serious consideration will also have to be given to the need for a national hepatitis C screening programme.