Epidemiologic features of a large hepatitis C cohort evaluated in a major health system in the western United States

Analysis of articles on hepatitis C by scientific mapping: 1989-2022

BACKGROUND

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) poses a significant quandary about public health. It is challenging to study the literature in a particular discipline comprehensively today. One solution is bibliometric analysis, which is often used to track the attributes and evolutionary trajectories of scientific outputs.

AIM

To examine the 35-year scientific evolution of articles focused on HCV.

METHODS

This study examined the 35-year scientific evolution of articles focused on HCV. Our study utilized the Web of Science database. The study encompassed a total of 11930 articles.

RESULTS

Regarding the cumulative count of articles, the leading countries are the United States, Japan, and Italy. Rice CM is the author with the highest recorded H-index and G-index values. The journal with the highest recorded H-index and G-index values is the Journal of Virology. The Journal of Viral Hepatitis contributed 10.94% of the articles, whereas the Journal of Virology published 9.68%. According to the strategic diagram, the keywords most frequently used in 2020-2022 are HCV, epidemiology, and sofosbuvir.

CONCLUSION

This study provides valuable information about 40 years of academic knowledge on HCV.

Self-awareness of hepatitis C infection in the United States: A cross-sectional study based on the National Health Nutrition and Examination Survey

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a global health issue with an estimated prevalence of 2.4 to 3 million people in the US and 58 million worldwide. Previous reports from the US have shown that close to half of those with the infection are unaware of their status. Although the current therapy for HCV is very effective, the primary barrier has been the inability to diagnose a large fraction of those infected. We studied public awareness of HCV in the US using National Health Nutrition and Examination Survey data from 2013 to 2020. Our aim was to measure awareness of infection in individuals with HCV and identify possible barriers to diagnosis. In total, 206 individuals with HCV were included in the weighted analysis. The weighted awareness of infection was 60.1%, suggesting that over 0.8 million are unaware nationally. Awareness was significantly low in the Mexican American and Asian populations. Non-US citizens and non-US-born individuals also had poor awareness. The transaminases were more elevated in those unaware of the infection, suggesting their higher risk of liver fibrosis. Although the proportion of infected people aware of their illness has been rising, over 0.8 million are still unaware of their infection and their risk of liver damage. We believe policy measures focused on further intense screening and educational campaigns, particularly in high-risk groups, are vital in realizing the World Health Organization's goal of eliminating HCV as a global health threat.