Current Situation of Health Care in Women With HBV or HCV Infection

Some of the sociocultural factors may prevent women infected with HBV or HCV benefiting from quality health care. Limited articles have ever reported the situation of health care in women with viral hepatitis. A previous study found that low HCV knowledge was observed in females, which was related to a lower willingness to be treated for HCV. Besides that, in other disease areas like hypertension, studies found that females have less awareness of their disease but have higher control over it compared with males. These findings might reflect the differences in health literacy levels which might influence disease outcomes, healthcare-seeking and adherence to treatment. This research aims to fill the data gaps of the gender differences in cascade of care in HBV and HCV, to facilitate patient activation, especially for women.

So far, data on the current health care status in HBV-infected women is scarce. With the expansion of treatment indications recommended by China CHB guidelines, more female patients will have the opportunity to gain timely and necessary treatment. This study will analyze the cascade of care by observing the duration from diagnosis to treatment and treatment adherence for women. And this knowledge will serve as a guide for interventions for the management of viral hepatitis, as well as effectively finding and activating patients who meet treatment criteria but are not being treated.

Inclusion criteria

HBV Cohort -

• ≥18 years old
• serum HBsAg positive for >6 months
• Treatment naïve or,
• Patients who had been previously treated for HBV but discontinued for at least 1 year before enrollment

HCV Cohort -

• ≥18 years old
• HCV-Ab positive
• HCV RNA positive
• Treatment naïve or,
• Patients who had been previously treated for HCV with a regimen containing interferon and not had a sustained virologic response.

Exclusion criteria

• HBV/HCV Co-infection
• HIV
• History of hepatic decompensation or hepatocellular carcinoma
• Other carcinoma
• Other severe liver disease
• Severe Comorbidity like cardiovascular disease, diabetes etc.
• Patients who had discontinued previous HCV treatment because of an adverse event.
• Patients who had previously received any nucleotide analogue HCV NS5B inhibitor or any NS5A inhibitor
• Patients who had discontinued previous HBV treatment because of an adverse event.