Hepatitis C virus genotypes in 1,504 patients in Slovenia, 1993–2007

In order to identify the main routes of hepatitis C (HCV) transmission and to determine the HCV genotype distribution and its dynamics during a 15‐year period in Slovenia, HCV genotypes were detected using the INNO‐LiPA HCV II (Innogenetics) test for serum samples obtained from 1,504 patients representing 72.6% of all patients with chronic hepatitis C diagnosed from 1993 to 2007. HCV genotype 1 was predominant (56%), followed by genotypes 3, 2, and 4, with a prevalence of 37.8%, 5%, and 1.2%, respectively. HCV genotypes 5 and 6 were not detected in any patient. Patients infected with HCV genotype 3 were significantly younger (mean age 28.9 ± 8.5 years) than those infected with genotype 1 (mean age 38.9 ± 14.8 years; P < 0.0001) and those infected with HCV genotype 2 (mean age 50.3 ± 18.2 years; P < 0.0001). Intravenous drug use was identified as the most frequent possible HCV transmission route (34.3%), followed by medical‐related transmission such as transfusion of HCV‐contaminated blood or blood products, and hemodialysis (12.5%). Being an intravenous drug user was found to be strongly associated with HCV genotype 3 (OR, 3.71 [95% CI, 2.97–4.65]; P < 0.0001) and reporting infection by transfusion of blood or blood products was found to be strongly associated with HCV genotype 1 (OR, 3.28 [95% CI, 2.18–4.95]; P < 0.0001). During the 15‐year period, the proportion of genotype 3 increased substantially, reflecting the fact that the HCV epidemic in Slovenia is driven mostly by intravenous drug use. J. Med. Virol. 81:634–639, 2009 © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.