DISEASE NAME:
Hepatitis C
CATEGORY:
Hepatitis
Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is a viral infection, which causes inflammation of the liver. It is spread through contact with the blood of an infected person. Sharing injecting needles and equipment (‘works’) with someone who is infected is the most common way to get hepatitis C in Ireland. About 25-30% of people who are infected clear the virus within one year of infection. The remaining 70-75% develop chronic (long-term) infection. This can cause serious liver disease, including cirrhosis (scarring of the liver), liver cancer and liver failure. This liver damage occurs gradually over 20-30 years in people with chronic infection. Hepatitis C became a notifiable disease in Ireland in 2004.
New highly effective treatments for hepatitis C became available in Ireland in late 2014. These result in a cure for over 95% of people who are infected. For more information on treatment please see:
https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/hepatitis-c/
Number of hepatitis C notifications and notification rate per 100,000 population in Ireland, 2004- Q1 2024
Last updated: 18 June 2024
Epidemiology of Hepatitis C in Ireland
22, Jul 2024
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Case Definitions
Clinical criteria
Not relevant for surveillance purposes
Laboratory Criteria
Acute case
At least one of the following two:
- Recent HCV seroconversion (prior negative test for hepatitis C in last 12 months)
- Detection of hepatitis C virus nucleic acid (HCV RNA) or hepatitis C virus core antigen (HCV-core) in serum/plasma AND no detection of hepatitis C virus antibody (negative result)
Chronic case
Detection of hepatitis C virus nucleic acid (HCV RNA) or hepatitis C core antigen
(HCV-core) in serum/plasma in two samples taken at least 12 months apart
Case of unknown status
Any case which cannot be classified according to the above description of acute or chronic infection and having at least one of the following three:
- Detection of hepatitis C virus nucleic acid (HCV RNA)
- Detection of hepatitis C virus core antigen (HCV-core)
- Hepatitis C virus specific antibody (anti-HCV) response confirmed by a confirmatory (e.g. immunoblot) antibody test in persons older than 18 months without evidence of resolved infection*
Epidemiological criteria
NA
Case classification
A. Possible case
NA
B. Probable case
NA
C. Confirmed case
Any person meeting the laboratory criteria
Note:
Resolved infection should not be notified.
*Resolved infection: Detection of hepatitis C virus antibody and no detection of hepatitis C virus nucleic acid (HCV RNA negative result) or hepatitis C virus core antigen (HCV-core negative result) in serum/plasma.
Current as of: 28 May 2018
Guidance
Hepatitis C Screening: National Clinical Guideline No. 15 Background supporting documents are available to view here.
**UNDER REVIEW** The Prevention of Transmission of Blood-borne Diseases in the Health-care Setting (2005)
This document, published by the Department of Health and Children in 2005, is currently under review
01, Jan 2025
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Information, Data and Reports for Hepatitis C
Ireland’s specialist service for the surveillance of communicable diseases.