Incidence and risk factors for hepatitis C infection in a cohort of women in rural Egypt

A prospective cohort study of the incidence and risk factors for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was performed in 2171 pregnant women in three rural Egyptian villages who were HCV antibody (anti-HCV) and RNA (HCV-RNA) negative at baseline. During an average of 2.2 years follow up, 25 incident cases were observed, giving an estimated HCV incidence of 5.2/1000 person-years (PY). The infection rate correlated with community anti-HCV prevalence in pregnant women, while the perinatal incidence rate of 11.2/1000 PY was almost five times that of the non-perinatal rate (2.3/1000 PY). The data suggested iatrogenic perinatal risk factors were associated with infection in one village, while health education reduced infections in another. Among the 25 incident cases, eight were HCV-RNA negative when they were first found to be anti-HCV positive and one-third of the 15 viraemic cases with follow-up data available cleared their HCV-RNA after an average of 1.3 years. None of the 25 incident cases were jaundiced or had symptoms of hepatitis but elevated serum alanine aminotransferase levels confirmed hepatitis in nine. Our data suggest that asymptomatic HCV infections frequently occurred during the perinatal period but often cleared and that educating medical personnel on safe practices possibly reduced HCV transmission.     

Prevalence of and risk factors for hepatitis C in rural pregnant Egyptian women

Prevalence and risk factors for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection were studied in 2,587 pregnant women from three rural Egyptian villages in the Nile Delta being admitted to a prospective cohort study of maternal-infant transmission; 408 (15.8%) had antibodies to HCV (anti-HCV) and 279 (10.8%) also had HCV-RNA. Fewer than 1% gave a history of jaundice or liver disease. Risk factors for anti-HCV included increasing age, low socioeconomic status and a history of blood transfusion or injection therapy for schistosomiasis. Sub-analyses after stratification of subjects by village revealed risks associated with specific venues for medical care, having a previous delivery attended by a traditional birth assistant (TBA), receiving medical care in a temporary clinic located in a mosque, overnight admission to a private doctor's clinic, and circumcision by a TBA or a 'health barber'. Our results suggest HCV causes very little detected illness in young adult Egyptian women and some sources of HCV transmission in rural Egypt in the past were associated with the provision of medical care and varied by location. Prevention should be focused on providing appropriate resources and health education should be given to formal and informal health care providers and should be sufficiently broad to adjust for local variations in exposures.     

血透患者中丙型肝炎病毒感染的流行病学研究

目的了解血透患者中丙型肝炎病毒的感染情况,并探讨相关的危险因素。方法对150例维持性血透患者应用逆转录聚合酶链反应及酶联免疫吸附法检测血清中HCV-RNA及抗HCV-IgG的水平。结果HCV-RNA的阳性率为26.7%(40/150例);抗HCV-IgG的阳性率为24%(36/150例);HCV感染率(总阳性率)为35.3%(52/150例)。结论提示血透患者中HCV感染率明显高于普通人群。输血及血制品是其第一位的危险因素,而透析器及管路的交叉使用也是不容忽视的危险因素之一。     

Vertical transmission of hepatitis C Virus: An epidemiological study on 2,980 pregnant women in Italy

The risk of mother-to-infant transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV) varies according to the population studied and the tests used. Aim of the current study was to investigate HCV vertical transmission rate in children born to 30 HCV positive/HIV negative pregnant women in Italy. We investigated the potential vertical transmission of HCV by identifying HCV antibody seropositive pregnant women, by analyzing HCV-RNA in the peripheral blood using PCR and by prospectively following their offspring until 24 months of age. During the third trimester, 2,980 consecutive pregnant women were examined for anti-HCV antibodies by a second generation Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (EIA2) and re-assayed by a second generation Recombinant Immunoblot Assay (RIBA2). A total of 32 mothers (1.07%) were positive for EIA2 test; 30 out of 32 had a reactive confirmatory RIBA2 test for HCV All anti-HCV positive mothers were negative for HIV. These 30 mothers and their 30 babies formed the study cohort. Of the 30 anti-HCV positive mothers, 10 were also positive for serum HCV-RNA by PCR. All the babies born to the 30 anti-HCV positive mothers were initially negative for HCV-RNA (cord blood specimens), but three babies became positive at three months of age and remained positive thereafter. These babies had been born to 3 of the 10 mothers with viremia during the third trimester of pregnancy. These results suggest that HCV vertical transmission is possible in 10% of anti-HCV positives and in about 33% of the HCV-RNA seropositive mothers.     

Sexual behaviour and multiple infections in drug abusers

We have studied the prevalence and the serological profile of HBV, HCV, HDV and HIV infections in 137 Italian subjects addicted to the intravenous use of heroine and correlated the virological findings with sexual behaviour. HBV and HCV viremia were also measured in 114 patients. Anti-HCV was detected in 81% of the addicts, and one or more markers of HBV infection were detected in 62.8% (4.4% were carriers of HBsAg, 58.4% had evidence of past HBV infection and 13.1% of the latter also had HDV markers). Anti-HIV was positive in 23.4%; 26% of those positive for anti-HCV and 4.6% of those positive for HBV markers had no other viral marker: none had only anti-HIV. HBV-DNA was negative in the carriers of HBsAg, and HCV-RNA was not detected in any of the HBsAg carriers who also had circulating anti-HCV Overall, 34% of the anti-HCV positive addicts had HCV-RNA in their blood. The prevalence of the virus infection correlated with the duration of drug addiction but not with sexual behaviour, and sexual behaviour did not influence the acquisition of any virus. HCV infection was most frequent and probably the first infection to occur, but exposure to HBV was also common despite a low rate of HBsAg carriage. The prevalence of HDV infection was high (50%) in the HBsAg carriers, while the overall prevalence of HIV was lower (23%) than expected. Lack of HBV-DNA and HCV-RNA in carriers of HBV with anti-HCV in serum may indicate that HBV and HCV mutually inhibit their own replication.     

Risk factors for hepatitis C virus infection among Egyptian healthcare workers in a national liver diseases referral centre

Little is known about the prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) among healthcare workers (HCW) in Egypt, where the highest worldwide prevalence of HCV exists. The prevalence of HCV, hepatitis B virus and Schistosoma mansoni antibodies was examined in 842 HCWs at the National Liver Institute in the Nile Delta, where >85% of patients are HCV antibody-positive. The mean age of HCWs was 31.5 years and they reported an average of 0.6±1.2 needlesticks/HCW/year. The prevalence of anti-HCV, hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and co-infection was 16.6%, 1.5% and 0.2%, respectively. HCV-RNA was present in 72.1% of anti-HCV-positive HCWs, and all but one subject were infected with HCV genotype 4. Schistosoma mansoni antibodies were present in 35.1%. The anti-HCV rate increased sharply with age and employment duration, but not among those with needlestick history. After adjusting for other risk factors, the anti-HCV rate was higher among older HCWs [P<0.001; risk ratio (RR) = 1.086, 95% CI 1.063-1.11], males (P=0.002; RR=1.911, 95% CI 1.266-2.885) and those with rural residence (P<0.001; RR=2.876, 95% CI 1.830-4.52). Occupation (P=0.133), duration of employment (P=0.272) or schistosomal antibody positivity (P=0.152) were not significant risk factors for anti-HCV positivity. In conclusion, although one in six HCWs had been infected with HCV, the infections were more likely to be community-acquired and not occupationally related.     

广西某美沙酮维持治疗门诊HCV抗体阳性就诊者病毒载量及相关因素分析

目的 检测广西某美沙酮维持治疗(methadone maintenance treatment,MMT)门诊丙型肝炎病毒(hepatitis C,HCV)抗体阳性者的HCV病毒载量探讨其相关影响因素.方法 对广西南宁市MMT门诊HCV抗体阳性就诊者进行调查,收集一般人口学信息、吸毒及HIV感染情况等,并进行HCV病毒载...     

Risk of transfusion-transmitted hepatitis C virus in a tertiary hospital in Nigeria

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the risk of probable iatrogenic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection following transfusion of donor blood that has not been screened for HCV. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective study. METHODS: Screening for human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis B virus is routine in the University of Benin Teaching Hospital. HCV screening was performed on transfused bags of donor blood selected at random. The detection of anti-HCV was based on the principle of double antigen sandwich immunoassay, in which purified recombinant antigens are employed sufficiently to identify anti-HCV. The outcomes of interest included the proportion of HCV-positive units of transfused donor blood, the source of blood and the total number of units of blood processed in the hospital blood bank. RESULTS: A total of 4532 units of donor blood were procured in the blood bank. Of these, 4132 units were certified as fit for transfusion following the hospital protocols. The sources of the transfused blood samples were commercial blood donors [89.2% (n = 3687)] and targeted donation [10.8% (n = 445)]. One hundred and ninety-two transfused blood samples were randomly screened for HCV, and 3% (n = 6) were found to be positive (95% confidence intervals 0.007-0.06). The likely risk of iatrogenic transfusion-related HCV infection was estimated to be 129 cases/year at the present rate of utilization of donor blood at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital. CONCLUSION: There is a risk of iatrogenic transfusion-transmitted HCV in the study hospital. Hospitals in Nigeria should screen for HCV prior to allogeneic transfusion, which may help in avoiding transfusion-related HCV and its probable long-term effects.     

天津市医院丙型肝炎检测和诊断能力研究

目的 了解天津市二级及以上医院开展丙型肝炎病毒抗体(抗-HCV)及核酸(HCV-RNA)检测情况,结合临床医生诊断结果评估医院诊断能力。 方法 2015年从天津市全市二级及以上医院的实验室检测记录中获得2014年抗-HCV和HCV-RNA检测结果,分析二级及以上医院抗-HCV检出阳性率、HCV-RNA检测率和阳性率;采用按比例系统抽样方法对住院病例进行调查,通过查阅病案资料获得住院病例的丙型肝炎诊断情况及相关病例诊断依据,对信息不详者经征得患者同意后进行电话随访,依据《丙型病毒性肝炎诊断标准》(WS 213-2008)对病例诊断逐一进行核查和判定,分析医院诊断正确率。从2014年疾病监测信息系统中获得报告的丙型肝炎病例基本资料,将医院已诊断病例与报告病例进行信息匹配,分析医院病例报告率,计算丙型肝炎校正报告发病率。 结果 在2014年天津市共88家二级以上医院中, 80家具备抗-HCV检测能力,占90.91%; 其中22家医院具备检出或外送检测HCV-RNA能力。天津市二级以上医院丙型肝炎抗-HCV 检出率为1.09%,传染病类医院抗-HCV阳性率(1.38%)要高于非传染病类医院(1.05%)(χ²_{M-H Summary}=401.052,P<0.001)。2014年天津市22家具备HCV-RNA检测能力医院有7 129例抗-HCV阳性者,HCV-RNA检测比例为15.72%(1 121/7 129),HCV-RNA阳性率为77.88%。根据1 031例抗-HCV阳性住院患者出院登记结果显示,丙型肝炎相关疾病诊断比例为58.29%。对住院病例核查诊断后,有953例可诊断为丙型肝炎(包括临床诊断和确诊病例),已报告率为31.90%(304/953),计算2014年丙型肝炎校正报告发病率是实际报告发病率的3.13倍,丙型肝炎校正报告发病率为10.60/10万。 结论 2014年天津市医院HCV-RNA实验检测项目比例较低,大部分病例未经核酸检测病毒复制情况,未能得到实验室确诊。抗-HCV阳性者住院病例漏诊和漏报比例较高,严重影响疫情报告数据的准确性,因此需进一步研究疫情报告质量。     

Major decline of hepatitis C virus incidence rate over two decades in a cohort of drug users

Injecting drug users (DU) are at high risk for hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV infections. To examine the prevalence and incidence of these infections over a 20-year period (1985–2005), the authors evaluated 1276 DU from the Amsterdam Cohort Studies who had been tested prospectively for HIV infection and retrospectively for HCV infection. To compare HCV and HIV incidences, a smooth trend was assumed for both curves over calendar time. Risk factors for HCV seroconversion were determined using Poisson regression. Among ever-injecting DU, the prevalence of HCV antibodies was 84.5% at study entry, and 30.9% were co-infected with HIV. Their yearly HCV incidence dropped from 27.5/100 person years (PY) in the 1980s to 2/100 PY in recent years. In multivariate analyses, ever-injecting DU who currently injected and borrowed needles were at increased risk of HCV seroconversion (incidence rate ratio 29.9, 95% CI 12.6, 70.9) compared to ever-injecting DU who did not currently inject. The risk of HCV seroconversion decreased over calendar time. The HCV incidence in ever-injecting DU was on average 4.4 times the HIV incidence, a pattern seen over the entire study period. The simultaneous decline of both HCV and HIV incidence probably results from reduced risk behavior at the population level. Charlotte H.S.B. van den Berg and ColetteSmit contributed equally to this paper     

Factors associated with prevalent hepatitis C: differences among young adult injection drug users in lower and upper Manhattan, New York City

OBJECTIVES: This study examined correlates of prevalent hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among young adult injection drug users in 2 neighborhoods in New York City. METHODS: Injection drug users aged 18 to 29 years were street recruited from the Lower East Side and Harlem. Participants were interviewed about drug use and sex practices; venipuncture was performed for hepatitis B virus (HBV), HCV, and HIV serologies. RESULTS: In both sites, testing positive for HCV antibody (anti-HCV) was associated with having injected for more than 3 years. Additionally, HCV infection was positively associated with injecting with someone known to have had hepatitis (but the association was significant only in the Lower East Side) and with sharing cotton (but the association was statistically significant only in Harlem). Being in drug treatment and older than 24 years were associated with HCV in the Lower East Side but not in Harlem. Receiving money for sex was associated with anti-HCV positivity in Harlem but not in the Lower East Side. CONCLUSIONS: Several differences in factors associated with prevalent HCV infection existed among 2 populations of young injection drug users from the same city. Indirect transmission of HCV may occur.     

Hepatitis C virus infection and the development of type 2 diabetes in a community-based longitudinal study

The temporal relation of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection to the development of type 2 diabetes remains unknown. The authors followed 4,958 persons aged > or =40 years without diabetes (3,486 seronegative, 812 anti-HCV+, 116 with hepatitis B virus/HCV coinfection, and 544 hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)+) from a community-wide cohort in southern Taiwan for 7 years (1997-2003) to study the risk of diabetes associated with HCV infection. A total of 474 participants developed diabetes. The 7-year cumulative incidence was 7.5% for HBsAg+, 8.6% for seronegative, 14.3% for anti-HCV+, and 14.7% for coinfected participants. Compared with HCV- persons, HCV+ persons had a higher cumulative incidence of diabetes (log-rank test, p < 0.0001). A multivariate Cox proportional hazards model showed that anti-HCV+ (hazard ratio = 1.7, 95% confidence interval: 1.3, 2.1), coinfection (hazard ratio = 1.7), overweight, obesity, and increasing age were significantly associated with diabetes (p < 0.05). Gender, educational level, HBsAg+ status, alcohol consumption, and smoking were not significant. After stratification by age and body mass index, the risk ratio for diabetes in anti-HCV+ participants increased when age decreased and body mass index levels increased (p < 0.001). Results show that HCV infection is an independent predictor of diabetes, especially for anti-HCV+ persons who are younger or have a higher body mass index.     

Incidence and risk factors of HCV and HIV infections in a cohort of intravenous drug users in the North and East of France

In order to evaluate the incidence and risk factors of infection by hepatitis C virus (HCV) among injecting drug users (IDUs), we conducted a prospective cohort study of HCV- and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-negative IDUs in the North and East of France. A total of 231 HCV and HIV IDUs who had injected drugs at least once in their lifetime were followed up every 3 months over a 12-month period. Serum anti-HCV and anti-HIV were tested at inclusion in the study and at the end of the follow-up. Data on injecting practices were collected at inclusion and at each visit. Of the 231 participants included, 165 (71.4%) underwent a final HCV and HIV serum test. The incidence was nil for HIV infection and 9/100 person-years (95% CI 4.6-13.4) for HCV infection. In a multivariable analysis, we found that syringe and cotton sharing were the only independent predictive factors of HCV seroconversion.     

A new assay for hepatitis C virus (HCV) core antigen detection: an alternative to nucleic acid technologies in positive or indeterminate anti-HCV subjects?

Markers of viral replication are fundamental tools for understanding the mode of transmission, diagnosis and management of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. A new enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for quantitative detection of free and complexed HCV core antigen (HCV Ag) has been developed. The aim of this study is to evaluate the clinical performance of the new test and compare it with the most widely used commercially available RT-PCR-based assay. To determine the cut-off value we tested 60 samples from anti-HCV negative samples and selected a qualitative cut-off value of 3 pg/ml. To evaluate the usefulness of the new assay in confirming serologically indeterminate results we collected 62 sera. To evaluate the HCV Ag and HCV-RNA relationship we tested 245 samples from patients with different clinical conditions. The results of 61 out of 62 (98.4%) anti-HCV indeterminate samples were found to agree, whereas only one serum was found to be RT-PCR positive and HCV Ag negative. We also found the results to agree in 77.6% (190/245) of the samples from infected patients, while we observed higher agreement in untreated patients, both with and without evidence of liver damage. The correlation coefficient (r) observed between HCV Ag and HCV-RNA was 0.88. The regression line meets the cut-off value at an HCV-RNA concentration of approximately 40,000 IU/ml. In conclusion, we found that the results from the total HCV Ag test agree with the RT-PCR results and therefore we believe that this test could become a useful tool for the diagnosis and management of HCV infection.     

Hepatitis C virus infection among children in aboriginal areas in Taiwan

The prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among adults in aboriginal areas has been shown to be higher than in urban areas in Taiwan. Whether the prevalence of HCV infection is also higher among children in aboriginal areas remains unclear. In total, 1176 schoolchildren in four aboriginal areas were invited to participate in the study. All children were tested for serum antibodies to HCV (anti-HCV) and liver enzymes. The age range of children was 6-13 years. Another 606 sex- and age-matched schoolchildren from an urban area served as controls. There was no statistically significant difference in prevalence of anti-HCV between aboriginal and Han Chinese students in aboriginal areas. The prevalence of anti-HCV was 0.3% (4/1176) in aboriginal areas, which was similar to the prevalence of 0% (0/606) in the urban area. The four anti-HCV seropositive aboriginal children were all negative for HCV RNA. Our data suggest that the high prevalence of anti-HCV among aboriginal adults might be due to subsequent exposure to risk factors after school age.     

抗-HCV、HCV-RNA、ALT在HCV感染病程中的分布

目的：了解抗-HCV、HCV-RNA、ALT在输血后HCV感染者病程中的动态变化。方法：运用ELISA法及PCR法对205例输血后肝炎进行检测，对105例输血后HCV感染病例进行追踪调查。结果：抗-HCV及HCV-RNA阳性率分别为57.1％和55.1％，抗-HCV阴性中HCV-RNA阳性率达30．2％。抗-HCV、HCV-RNA及ALT在急性及慢性病人临床病程中呈现不同的特点。结论：PCR法在HCV感染的确诊、血源筛选等方面具有一定的流行病学意义。     

Hepatitis C in a ward for cystic fibrosis and diabetic patients: possible transmission by spring-loaded finger-stick devices for self-monitoring of capillary blood glucose.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the routes of transmission in a nosocomial outbreak of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. DESIGN: Epidemiological investigation, including screening for HCV of hospitalized patients, and a retrospective cohort study, review of hygiene and medical practices, and molecular comparison of HCV isolates. SETTING: A specialized care unit for cystic fibrosis (CF) and diabetic patients at an acute-care facility in the south of France. RESULTS: Of the 57 CF patients (age in 1995: 2-28 years), 38 (66.7%) were tested and 22 (57.9%) were anti-HCV positive. Eight (50%) of 16 patients with anti-HCV antibody tested by polymerase chain reaction were viremic. No patients had received blood products or had any history of intravenous drug use. All 18 (100%) patients with CF who had ever undergone self-monitoring of capillary blood glucose in the unit were anti-HCV positive, compared to 4 (20%) of 20 who had not (relative risk, 5.0; 95% confidence interval, 2.1-12.0). Seventy (39.5%) of the patients with diabetes were screened for anti-HCV; 12 (18.8%) tested positive, with 3 (25%) positive for HCV-RNA. Patients with diabetes had routine capillary blood glucose monitoring while hospitalized and shared with CF patients the same spring-triggered devices for capillary blood glucose monitoring. The disposable platform of the devices was not changed between patient use. All HCV isolates belonged to the type 1, subtype b, and phylogenetic analysis showed a close homology by sequencing of NS5b and E2/HVR regions. CONCLUSION: As reported earlier for the hepatitis B virus, shared spring-triggered devices for capillary blood glucose monitoring by finger puncture may transmit HCV. Strict application of Standard Precautions procedures is warranted in any healthcare setting.     

HCV transmission in family members of subjects with HCV related chronic liver disease

To investigate the risk of sexual and intrafamilial transmission of HCV, 220 family members of 76 patients (index cases) with chronic type C viral liver disease were tested for serological markers of HCV Of the family members, 129 were offspring, 64 sexual partners, 15 parents and 12 siblings of the index cases. Anti-HCV was tested in all the household contacts; HCV-RNA was tested in antibody positive samples. The serologic markers of HCV were tested in a control group of 168 family members of 81 patients with chronic hepatitis unrelated to HCV. The overall prevalence of anti-HCV was 8.2% compared to 0.6% in the control group (p < 0.001). Sexual partners were anti-HCV positive more frequently than the other contacts (20% vs 2.2%; p < 0.001), without any difference in males or females. No correlation was observed between the occurrence of HCV infection in contacts and age, severity of liver disease or risk factor for the acquisition of HCV in the index cases. Seven of the 18 (39%) anti-HCV positive family contacts had biochemical evidence of chronic liver disease, histologically confirmed in the 6 patients who underwent a liver biopsy. Liver chemistry was normal in all the HCV-negative contacts. Ten of the 18 anti-HCV positive contacts (55%) were HCV-RNA positive. Genotypes were the same (lb) in 4 of the 7 viremic couples of subjects: in 3 of the 6 couples of sexual partners and in the only mother/son couple. These data suggest the occurrence of intraspousal transmission of HCV, while intrafamiliar acquisition of HCV in non-sexual contacts seems to be rare.     

Hepatitis C virus infection and B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

Oncogenesis is a multifactorial process in which environmental, genetical and infectious factors may be of importance. Specific viruses are supposed to have etiological role in about 15% of human tumors. Recently the B-cell proliferation inducing effect of the hepatotropic and lymphotropic hepatitis-C virus (HCV) came into the limelight based on the high prevalence of HCV positivity in B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) patients. The aim of the authors was to establish the prevalence of HCV infection in NHL patients. Paralelly the HBV, CMV and EBV markers, and the alterations of the humoral immune response (immunoglobulins, cryoglobulins, rheumatoid factor) were determined. 42 patients (24 male, 18 female; the mean age: 54.1 years, range 22-80 years) classified as 16 indolent (low risk), and 25 aggressive (intermediate risk) NHL and one with very aggressive Burkitt's lymphoma, according to the modified REAL classification were examined. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for HBsAg and anti-HCV, HBsAg, anti EBV, anti CMV, furthermore polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for HCV-RNA were used. Anti-HCV was found in 6/42 NHL patients (14.3%), while anti-HCV and/or HCV-RNA PCR positivity revealed on overall HCV infection in 10/42 (23.8%) patients. None of them were HBsAg positive. Our findings support the hypothesis, that HCV might have an aetiological role in the lymphoproliferation leading to B-cell NHL.     

Influence of maternal human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) co-infection on vertical transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV): a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Maternal co-infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has been implicated as a potentially important co-factor for enhanced vertical transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV). In previous reports, however, methodological issues (notably small sample sizes) have limited accurate evaluation of the contribution of maternal co-infection with HIV on the risk of vertical transmission of HCV. METHODS: A systematic review and subsequent meta-analysis of current published and unpublished reports was performed. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% CI for individual studies were calculated with maternal HIV serostatus as the exposure measure and HCV vertical transmission as the outcome measure. Overall summary estimates were then calculated using a random effects model that estimates a weighted average of OR from individual studies. RESULTS: In total, 2382 infants from 10 studies were included in an analysis of HCV-infected mothers (defined by anti-HCV+ antibody assays) with and without concomitant HIV infection. The risk estimate (OR) of HCV vertical transmission was 2.82 (95% CI: 1.78-4.45; P = 0.00001) from anti-HCV+/HIV+ co-infected mothers compared with anti-HCV+/HIV- mothers. In a subanalysis of 1327 infants born to viraemic (HCV RNA+) mothers, the risk estimate of HCV vertical transmission was 1.97 (95% CI: 1.04-3.74; P = 0.04) from HCV viraemic/HIV+ co-infected mothers compared with HCV viraemic/HIV- mothers. CONCLUSIONS: Results from this meta-analysis of observational studies suggest that the risk of HCV vertical transmission is higher in infants born to HIV co-infected mothers.