Epidemiological and clinical features of chronic hepatitis C in Saint-Petersburg in 2015–2024

The aim of the study is to assess the features of the epidemic process and clinical and virological characteristics of chronic hepatitis C (CHC) in Saint-Petersburg over a ten-year period (2015–2024). Material and methods . A retrospective epidemiological analysis of the incidence and mortality of CHC in Russia and Saint-Petersburg for 2015– 2024 was carried out based on data from Federal Statistical Surveillance, government reports and reports from medical organizations of various forms of ownership (The Botkin Clinical Infectious Diseases Hospital, Saint-Petersburg, Russia; non-governmental medical clinic EXCLUSIVE, Saint-Petersburg, Russia). The study included 500 outpatient patients with CHC. Results . In the Russian Federation and Saint-Petersburg, in the period from 2014 to 2024, there was a decrease in the incidence of CHC by 1.1 times (p < 0.05), the incidence of CHC in Saint-Petersburg exceeds the national values by 2.4 times. Over the past decade, there has been an increase in cases of hospitalization for both acute and chronic hepatitis C, in 2024 the proportion of patients with CHC was 8.5 %. HCV subtype 1b (53.6 %) and 3а (36.8 %) prevailed. Advanced stages of liver fibrosis (F3 and F4), which determine the need for priority start of antiviral therapy, were noted in 42.1 % of patients, which is almost 2 times more than the national level. Hepatitis C virus monoinfection and hepatitis B and C co-infection were the main causes of liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in hospitalized patients. In the etiological structure of hospital case-fatality, the leading place is occupied by the mixed infection of hepatitis B and C viruses (2024 – 33 %), which is more than 2 times higher than the indicators of the prepandemic period (p < 0.05). Conclusions. The high epidemiological and clinical significance of the CHC burden for Saint-Petersburg in shown, which determines the need to optimize the epidemiological surveillance system, screening programs, as well as access to antiviral therapy.