A review of the burden of hepatitis C virus infection in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan

Abstract

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is associated with substantial clinical and economic burden and is an important public health issue in Asia. The objective of this review was to characterize HCV epidemiology and related complications in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. A search of electronic databases and conference abstracts identified 71 potentially relevant articles. Of those, 55 were included in the epidemiology review and 9 in the review of HCV-related complications. HCV prevalence in the general population was 1.6% in China, 0.6-0.9% in Japan, 0.6-1.1% in South Korea and 1.8-5.5% in Taiwan. Prevalence was higher for injecting drug users (48-90%) and those with human immunodeficiency virus coinfection (32-85%) and was lower for blood donors (<1%). Annual incidence of HCV in China was 6.01 per 100,000. HCV genotype 1b was associated with the highest incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Five-year survival for patients with liver cirrhosis was 73.8%, decreasing to 39.2% following liver transplantation; the majority of deaths were attributable to HCC. Limitations were that the majority of studies included in the epidemiology review were small, regional studies conducted in specific populations, and there was an absence of large population-based studies. Thus, estimates may not be representative of the epidemiology of HCV for each country. The prevalence HCV in China and HCV incidence in the Asian region remain largely unknown, and they are likely underestimated. Further epidemiologic and clinical data are needed to provide more precise estimates for use by public health agencies.

Efficacy and safety of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir in Japanese patients with chronic genotype 2 hepatitis C virus infection with and without cirrhosis

“…Previous studies have shown that lower SVR12 rates were achieved in patients with GT1b treated with OBV/PTV/r who have the NS5A Y93H polymorphism at baseline compared to HCV GT1b patients without this polymorphism [17]. As a result, JSH guidelines for the management of hepatitis C virus infection does not recommend treatment with OBV/PTV/r for patients with the NS5A Y93 polymorphism [1,13]. Patients with Y93H in this study were assigned to treatment with G/P and 100% achieved SVR12, indicating the high potency of G/P against a hepatitis C virus containing the Y93H polymorphism, whose incidence rate in Japanese HCV patients is approximately 19% [18].…”

“…Approximately 1.5 million individuals are estimated to have HCV infection in Japan, which corresponds to the highest rate in the industrialized world [1][2][3][4]. Of those, approximately 70% are infected with GT1 (predominantly GT1b) and 30% with GT2 [5].…”

Membranous nephropathy associated with hepatitis C virus infection treated with corticosteroids and Ledipasvir-Sofosbuvir: a case report and review of literature

“…Meanwhile, HCV prevalence in the Chinese population was 1.6%. Annual incidence of HCV in China was 6.01 per 100,000 [8]. Almost 40% of patients with HCV develop at least one extrahepatic manifestation during the course of the disease, including kidney disease [9].…”

Geographic integration of hepatitis C virus: A global threat

“…It is found in parts of East Asia (South China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao) and Southeast Asia (Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and Burma). There is no information on HCV genotypes in the highly populated countries of Bangladesh, Malaysia and North Korea[47]. …”