Abstract
Background: Homeless men are highly vulnerable to acquisition of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) compared to the general population. In Brazil, a country of continental dimensions, the extent of HCV infection in this population remains unknown. The objective of this study is to investigate the epidemiological profile of exposure to HCV in homeless men in Central Brazil. Methods: A Cross-sectional study was conducted in 481 men aged over 18 years attending therapeutic communities specialized in the recovery and reintegration of homeless people. Participants were tested for anti-HCV markers using rapid tests. Poisson regression analysis was used to verify the risk factors associated with exposure to HCV. Results: The prevalence of HCV exposure was 2.5% (95.0% CI: 1.4 to 4.3%) and was associated with age, absence of family life, injection drug use, number of sexual partners, and history of sexually transmitted infections (STI). Participants reported multiple risk behaviors, such as alcohol (78.9%), cocaine (37.1%) and/or crack use (53.1%), and inconsistent condom use (82.6%). Injection drug use was reported by 8.7% of participants. Conclusions: The prevalence of HCV infection among homeless men was relatively high. Several risk behaviors were commonly reported, which shows the high vulnerability of this population. These findings emphasize the need for the development of specific strategies to reduce the risk of HCV among homeless men.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 90 |
| Journal | BMC Public Health |
| Volume | 17 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jan 18 2017 |
Fingerprint
Keywords
- Epidemiology
- HCV
- Homeless
- Prevalence
- Risk factors
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
Cite this
Exposure to hepatitis C virus in homeless men in Central Brazil : A cross-sectional study. / Ferreira, Priscilla Martins; Guimarães, Rafael Alves; Souza, Christiane Moreira; Guimarães, Lara Cristina Da Cunha; Barros, Cleiciane Vieira De Lima; Caetano, Karlla Antonieta Amorim; Rezza, Giovanni; Spadoni, Lila; Brunini, Sandra Maria.
In: BMC Public Health, Vol. 17, No. 1, 90, 18.01.2017.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Exposure to hepatitis C virus in homeless men in Central Brazil
T2 - A cross-sectional study
AU - Ferreira, Priscilla Martins
AU - Guimarães, Rafael Alves
AU - Souza, Christiane Moreira
AU - Guimarães, Lara Cristina Da Cunha
AU - Barros, Cleiciane Vieira De Lima
AU - Caetano, Karlla Antonieta Amorim
AU - Rezza, Giovanni
AU - Spadoni, Lila
AU - Brunini, Sandra Maria
PY - 2017/1/18
Y1 - 2017/1/18
N2 - Background: Homeless men are highly vulnerable to acquisition of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) compared to the general population. In Brazil, a country of continental dimensions, the extent of HCV infection in this population remains unknown. The objective of this study is to investigate the epidemiological profile of exposure to HCV in homeless men in Central Brazil. Methods: A Cross-sectional study was conducted in 481 men aged over 18 years attending therapeutic communities specialized in the recovery and reintegration of homeless people. Participants were tested for anti-HCV markers using rapid tests. Poisson regression analysis was used to verify the risk factors associated with exposure to HCV. Results: The prevalence of HCV exposure was 2.5% (95.0% CI: 1.4 to 4.3%) and was associated with age, absence of family life, injection drug use, number of sexual partners, and history of sexually transmitted infections (STI). Participants reported multiple risk behaviors, such as alcohol (78.9%), cocaine (37.1%) and/or crack use (53.1%), and inconsistent condom use (82.6%). Injection drug use was reported by 8.7% of participants. Conclusions: The prevalence of HCV infection among homeless men was relatively high. Several risk behaviors were commonly reported, which shows the high vulnerability of this population. These findings emphasize the need for the development of specific strategies to reduce the risk of HCV among homeless men.
AB - Background: Homeless men are highly vulnerable to acquisition of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) compared to the general population. In Brazil, a country of continental dimensions, the extent of HCV infection in this population remains unknown. The objective of this study is to investigate the epidemiological profile of exposure to HCV in homeless men in Central Brazil. Methods: A Cross-sectional study was conducted in 481 men aged over 18 years attending therapeutic communities specialized in the recovery and reintegration of homeless people. Participants were tested for anti-HCV markers using rapid tests. Poisson regression analysis was used to verify the risk factors associated with exposure to HCV. Results: The prevalence of HCV exposure was 2.5% (95.0% CI: 1.4 to 4.3%) and was associated with age, absence of family life, injection drug use, number of sexual partners, and history of sexually transmitted infections (STI). Participants reported multiple risk behaviors, such as alcohol (78.9%), cocaine (37.1%) and/or crack use (53.1%), and inconsistent condom use (82.6%). Injection drug use was reported by 8.7% of participants. Conclusions: The prevalence of HCV infection among homeless men was relatively high. Several risk behaviors were commonly reported, which shows the high vulnerability of this population. These findings emphasize the need for the development of specific strategies to reduce the risk of HCV among homeless men.
KW - Epidemiology
KW - HCV
KW - Homeless
KW - Prevalence
KW - Risk factors
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85009758608&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85009758608&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1186/s12889-016-3952-6
DO - 10.1186/s12889-016-3952-6
M3 - Article
C2 - 28100196
AN - SCOPUS:85009758608
VL - 17
JO - BMC Public Health
JF - BMC Public Health
SN - 1471-2458
IS - 1
M1 - 90
ER -