Photo Credit: Alena Butusava

A retrospective cohort study published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases analyzed surveillance data obtained between 2015 and 2021 to assess the impact of HIV coinfection and Ryan White (RW) HIV care on hepatitis C virus (HCV) clearance. Marissa Tan, DO, MPH, and colleagues found that among 10,251 patients with newly reported HCV, 353 patients (3.4%) had HIV coinfection. Patients with HIV were more likely to achieve HCV clearance than those with HCV monoinfection (adjusted HR, 1.2; 95% CI, 1.1–1.4; P<0.05). Furthermore, for patients with HIV coinfection, participation in RW support services two to six times per month significantly increased the likelihood of HCV clearance (adjusted HR, 1.7–3.1; P<0.05). “Among newly reported HCV infections, the likelihood of HCV clearance was higher among persons with HIV coinfection who participated in RW support services,” Dr. Tan and colleagues wrote. “Frequent receipt of supportive services, such as those provided by the national, federally funded RW system, is crucial for HCV elimination.”