Testing strategies for Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C
Citation: Mason LMK, Veldhuijzen IK, Duffell E, et al. Hepatitis B and C testing strategies in healthcare and community settings in the EU/EEA: A systematic review. Journal of Viral Hepatitis. 2019;26(12):1431–1453.
Language: Abstract and full text available in EN.
Free to view: Yes.
Funding sources: The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.
What is this? In this systematic review, the authors searched for original research articles about testing for Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and Hepatitis C virus (HCV) in countries of the European Union and European Economic Area (EU/EEA). They searched in September 2017 for articles published since 2008 and found 93 studies.
What was found? The authors found successful testing in primary care, hospitals, and other healthcare and community settings. Coverage was increased by testing populations at higher risk, the use of newer tests, such as dried blood spots and oral sampling, and community outreach. There was limited evidence on partner notification. The utility of birth cohort screening depended on local epidemiology. There was limited evidence on self‐sampling kits and no evidence was found on self‐testing for HBV/HCV.
Implications: The authors of the review stated that impediments to testing for Hepatitis B and C viruses were found at individual, healthcare provider, and institutional levels. A diverse approach within national testing strategies may increase test coverage and reduce of the proportion of people with undiagnosed HBV/HCV.
Other considerations: The authors of the review discussed their findings in the context of gender, sex, education, socioeconomic status, and social capital.
This summary was prepared by Eszter Szocs, checked by Grace Meng, and finalized by William Summerskill.