Hepatitis C virus

Abstract

Infection with hepatitis C virus (HCV) has become a global health problem with a prevalence estimated by the World Health Organization of 2%, representing 123 million people. In developed countries, HCV infection is the most common form of chronic viral hepatitis and up to 20% of those chronically infected will develop cirrhosis and 1-4% of these will develop hepatocellular carcinoma. The burden of current HCV related complications is considerable and modeling predicts that the prevalence of serious sequelae due to chronic hepatitis C will increase substantially during the next few decades. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.