Is Having Diabetic Foot Infection a Risk Factor for Hepatitis C?

• DOI: 10.5578/flora.20239718
• Publication Date: 2023-09-22T09:26:02Z
• Authors: Nazlıhan Yalçın; Ilgın Yıldırım Şi...; Anıl Murat Öztürk; Tansu Yamazhan; Meltem Işıkgöz Ta...; Hüsnü Pullukçu
• Keywords: Sustained Virological Response; Diabetes mellitus; Insulin-Resistance; Virus-Infection; Diabetic foot infection; HCV prevalence; 3. Good health

Introduction: This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in patients followed up with the diagnosis of diabetic foot infection (DFI) in the Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology of Ege University Faculty of Medicine between 2016-2023.Materials and Methods: Patients who were followed up with the diagnosis of DFI between 2016-2023 were investigated retrospectively for anti-HCV test positivity via electronic patient files. Demographic data, HCV-RNA test results, and treatment status of the patients with positive anti-HCV tests were recorded. The obtained data were entered into the Excel statistical analysis software. Statistical analysis was performed using the Chi-square test, and a p-value of 0.05 was considered significant.Results: A total of 660 diabetic foot infection patients were included in the study. The number of patients who were diagnosed with DFI and tested for anti-HCV was 361 (262 males, 99 females, mean age 63.7 +/- 11.8 years). Anti-HCV positivity was present in eight patients, HCV-RNA was positive in four of these patients, and the HCV-RNA positivity rate was 4/361 (1.1%). In two patients with HCV-RNA positivity, sustained viral response was observed after treatment. Among those who tested positive, one patient remained on antiviral treatment. Antiviral treatment was planned for one patient who tested positive. It was determined that another patient with a positive test did not receive any treatment and did not come for follow-up, and this patient was contacted and his treatment started. It was found that the seroprevalence of HCV in our patient group with diabetic foot infection was eight out of 361 (2.2%). This rate was approximately 7.3 times higher than the risk observed in the general population.Conclusion: IIn order to achieve success in HCV elimination, risky groups must be screened and treated. Hepatitis C virus infection is a disease with a risk of parenteral transmission. Therefore, patients with diabetic foot infection (DFI) should be regarded as a high-risk group due to factors such as advanced age, frequent hospital admissions, history of multiple surgeries, frequent blood transfusions, parenteral treatment interventions, or procedures like hemodialysis. Consequently, it is recommended that this patient group undergo screening for HCV.