Hepatitis C Testing for Men with HIV is Critical, CDC Says

[Guest guest]

http://www.thirdage.com/news/hepatitis-c-testing-for-men-with-hiv-is-critical-cd\

c-says_08-01-2011

Hepatitis C Testing for Men with HIV is Critical, CDC Says

Posted by Caitlin Bronson on August 1, 2011

Testing men for hepatitis C who were infected with HIV through having sex with

other men is highly important, a report published in the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention said. This is especially true for men choosing to engage

in high-risk sexual behavior, UPI reports.

According to the published material, men who have unprotected sex with

HIV-infected partners can receive other infections such as hepatitis C, UPI

said.

The report from the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly comes after

investigators at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York noticed an increase

in hepatitis C transmission among HIV-infected men having sex with men.

Intrigued, researchers examined the role of sexual transmission among the men

who had no other risk factors for hepatitis C infection like drug use or

catheter procedures.

“The study found men co-infected with HIV and hepatitis C were significantly

more likely to engage in high-risk sexual behaviors and non-injection drug use

during sex,” the CDC report said. “In addition, hepatitis C genetic analysis

suggested that hepatitis was transmitted within social networks of the men and

infection with HIV may lead to an increased likelihood of sexual transmission of

hepatitis and accelerate HCV disease progression.”