Hepatitis C: key points

  • In 2018, around 21,000 people living in Scotland lives with chronic hepatitis C infection, approximately 50% of whom have been diagnosed (10,500).
  • In 2018, there were over 1,400 new diagnoses of hepatitis C. Of those, 67% were male and 33% female. The number of new diagnoses has been decreasing during the last years and this is the lowest value since 1996.
  • The hepatitis C virus was first identified in 1989 and an antibody test to detect its presence became available in 1991.
  • In resource rich countries hepatitis C is usually transmitted among injecting drug users who share injecting equipment.
  • In resource poor countries hepatitis C is usually transmitted through the receipt of infected blood / blood products.
  • Those affected by hepatitis C often have no symptoms, but in the long-term the infection may progress to liver cirrhosis.
  • No vaccine is available, but the most recent treatment clears the virus in more than 90% of cases.

 

Section updates:

  • The last update of this section was completed in June 2023.
  • The next update is due to be carried out in March 2024.