Hepatitis C virus infection in patients undergoing surgery in a single tertiary academic center

Abstract

Background and AimLack of awareness disturbs proper care for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections in patients undergoing surgery. We investigated the status of HCV screening, confirmation, and treatment in patients who underwent surgery.MethodsPatients who underwent surgery at a tertiary academic center between 2019 and 2021 were eligible for this retrospective study.ResultsBetween 2019 and 2021, 96 894 patients (40 121 males; 41.4%) who underwent surgery under general anesthesia were recruited. The median age of the participants was 55.0 years. Of the 83 920 (86.6%) patients who tested positive for anti‐HCV antibodies, 576 (0.7%) showed positive results, with a higher proportion of patients with diabetes mellitus (32.6% vs 18.5%), hypertension (50.5% vs 28.6%), liver cirrhosis (13.2% vs 1.7%), and unfavorable laboratory test results when compared with those with negative results (all P < 0.05). HCV RNA was tested in 215 patients (37.3%), with a positivity rate of 20.5% (n = 44). Of the 44 patients, 42 (95.5%) were referred for antiviral treatment, and 29 (69.0%) were successfully treated with direct‐acting antiviral therapy. HCV RNA confirmation rates were higher in the Department of Hepatobiliary and Transplant Surgery (76.6%) than in the other surgical departments (25.0–33.5%) (P < 0.001).ConclusionsThe proportion of patients who were positive for anti‐HCV antibodies and failed to receive proper management after surgery was not negligible. Increased awareness of HCV infection among surgeons through appropriate education may be required.