Changes in risk behavior and dynamics of hepatitis C virus infections among young drug users in Amsterdam, the Netherlands

Laar, T.J.W. van de; Langendam, Miranda; Bruisten, Sylvia M.; Welp, Esther A. E.; Verhaest, Inge; Ameijden, E. J. C. Van; Coutinho, Roel A.; Prins, Maria

doi:10.1002/jmv.20486

Cited by 53 publications

(63 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…It reflects the cumulative exposure to infected needles and injection paraphernalia. On the other hand, sharing syringes was not identified as a risk factor; a similar result to that observed in Van de Laar et al [19].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Estimating the force of infection for HCV in injecting drug users using interval-censored data

et al. 2011

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SUMMARYInjecting drug users (IDUs) account for most new HCV infections. The objectives of this study were : to estimate the force of infection for hepatitis C virus in IDUs within the interval-censoring framework and to determine the impact of risk factors such as frequency of injection, drug injected, sharing of syringes and time of first injection on the time to HCV infection. We used data from the Amsterdam Cohort Study collected in The Netherlands and focused on those individuals who were HCV negative upon entry into the study. Based on the results, the force of infection was found to vary with time of first injection. The risk of infection was higher in the first 3 years of an IDU's career, implying estimates based on single cross-sectional studies could be biased. Frequency of injection and type of drug injected were found to be highly significant predictors, whereas sharing syringes was not.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Estimating the force of infection for HCV in injecting drug users using interval-censored data

et al. 2011

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“…All AHS participants were part of surveys performed to monitor the general population or specific risk groups for the presence of sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections. AHS establishes the HCV genotype using an in-house PCR targeting the HCV core region (33). AMC uses a commercial 5Ј untranslated region-based HCV genotyping assay (Trugene 5ЈNC; Genelibrarian module 3.1.2; Bayer Healthcare, Berkeley, CA).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…NS5B PCR 2. NS5B fragment 2 (436 bp, nucleotides 8206 to 8642) was amplified by a nested PCR assay, as described by van de Laar et al (33). The composition of the reaction mixture and the cycling conditions were identical to those described above, except some modifications were made so that 3 l cDNA instead of 3 l RNA could be used as the input for the first-round PCR.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emergence of Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 4: Phylogenetic Analysis Reveals Three Distinct Epidemiological Profiles

et al. 2009

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Hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 4 (HCV-4) infection is considered to be difficult to treat and has become increasingly prevalent in European countriesHepatitis C virus (HCV) affects an estimated 170 million people worldwide. HCV infection persists in 50 to 85% of those infected and can, over decades, lead to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (11). The HCV genome displays considerable sequence divergence, and HCV variants have been classified into seven major genotypes. Genotypes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 are further subdivided into numerous subtypes (subtypes a, b, c, etc.) (27). In the absence of complete genome sequences, the designation of a subtype is based mainly on consensus regions in the core/E1 and NS5B regions of the HCV genome (27). The HCV genotype distribution depends on the geographical region and the mode of transmission. As the distribution of HCV genotypes can change over time, genotyping provides a powerful tool that may be used to investigate the spread of HCV within a community (18).In Europe, North America, and Australia, most HCV-infected patients (Ͼ80%) are infected with genotype 1, 2, or 3 (10). HCV genotype 4 (HCV-4) is the most common genotype in the Middle East and in northern and central Africa, accounting for more than 20% of all chronic HCV infections worldwide (28). In Egypt, the country with the highest prevalence of HCV in the world, more than 90% of patients are infected with . HCV-4 is considered difficult to treat and has a sustained virological response rate of approximately 60% (28), where the rates are 40 to 50% for genotype 1 and 80 to 90% for genotypes 2 and 3 (17).Recent studies emphasize that the prevalence of HCV-4 in Europe has increased in the past few decades due to the immigration of HCV carriers and the subsequent spread of HCV-4 in European populations at risk for HCV infection (2,5,16,24,25,30). In southern Europe, HCV-4 is responsible for 10 to 24% of chronic HCV infections. In The Netherlands, HCV-4 accounts for an estimated 10% of chronic HCV infections (6, 32). Currently, the development of new genotypespecific antiviral agents is focused mainly on HCV genotype 1. The emergence of HCV-4 may require agents specific for HCV-4 to improve the response rates and decrease the future burden of HCV-4 disease. The population of the region around Amsterdam, The Netherlands, comprises many ethnicities and diverse groups at risk for HCV infection, providing

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“…These lineages fall within the greater African diversity, but the extent of their divergence suggests dissemination from Africa before the rise of global travel and modern medicine (20). During the 20th century, transmission via contaminated blood, blood products, invasive procedures, and IDU eventually resulted in the global dispersal of HCV-2, particularly subtypes 2a and 2b, which cause the vast majority of HCV-2 infections in developed countries (9,11,44). Interestingly, two recent studies from France revealed a wide variety of HCV-2 subtypes, including among the native French population (5,40).…”

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confidence: 99%

Colonial History and Contemporary Transmission Shape the Genetic Diversity of Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 2 in Amsterdam

Markov

Laar

Thomas

et al. 2012

J Virol

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g Evolutionary analysis of hepatitis C virus (HCV) genome sequences has provided insights into the epidemic history and transmission of this widespread human pathogen. Here we report an exceptionally diverse set of 178 HCV genotype 2 (HCV-2) isolates from 189 patients in Amsterdam, comprising 8 distinct HCV subtypes and 10 previously not recognized, unclassified lineages. By combining study subjects' demographic information with phylogeographic and molecular clock analyses, we demonstrate for the first time that the trans-Atlantic slave trade and colonial history were the driving forces behind the global dissemination of HCV-2. We detect multiple HCV-2 movements from present-day Ghana/Benin to the Caribbean during the peak years of the slave trade (1700 to 1850) and extensive transfer of HCV-2 among the Netherlands and its former colonies Indonesia and Surinam over the last 150 years. The latter coincides with the bidirectional migration of Javanese workers between Indonesia and Surinam and subsequent immigration to the Netherlands. In addition, our study sheds light on contemporary trends in HCV transmission within the Netherlands. We observe multiple lineages of the epidemic subtypes 2a, 2b, and 2c (together 67% of HCV-2 infections in Amsterdam), which cluster according to their suspected routes of transmission, specifically, injecting drug use (IDU) and contaminated blood/blood products. Understanding the epidemiological processes that generated the global pattern of HCV diversity seen today is critical for exposing associations between populations, risk factors, and specific HCV subtypes and might help HCV screening and prevention campaigns to minimize the future burden of HCV-related liver disease.

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Changes in risk behavior and dynamics of hepatitis C virus infections among young drug users in Amsterdam, the Netherlands

Cited by 53 publications

References 41 publications

Estimating the force of infection for HCV in injecting drug users using interval-censored data

Estimating the force of infection for HCV in injecting drug users using interval-censored data

Emergence of Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 4: Phylogenetic Analysis Reveals Three Distinct Epidemiological Profiles

Colonial History and Contemporary Transmission Shape the Genetic Diversity of Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 2 in Amsterdam

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