Prevalence of viral hepatitis A and C in patients with inflammatory bowel disease: a nationwide population-based study in South Korea

BACKGROUND/AIMS: We investigated whether patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in Korea have an increased risk of hepatitis A virus (HAV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections and sought to identify the risk factors for these infections. METHODS: We performed a nationwide population-based study using 2013-2021 data from the Korean National Health Insurance Claims Database. We calculated the incidence rates and standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) of HAV and HCV infections in patients with IBD compared with the overall Korean population. RESULTS: A total of 43,513 patients were included in this study. A total of 317 cases of HAV were identified in 276,007 perdison- years, while 297 cases of HAV developed in the Korean general population. The SIR of HAV in the patients with IBD was 1.07 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.96-1.19) and the increase of HAV infection in patients with IBD was not statistically significant. A total of 289 cases of HCV infection were identified in 276,538 person-years, while 242 cases of HCV infection developed in the Korean general population. The SIR of HCV in patients with IBD was 1.19 (95% CI, 1.06-1.34) and the increase of HCV infection in patients with Crohn's disease (SIR, 1.63; 95% CI, 1.31-2.04). Corticosteroid use was identified as a risk factor for HAV and HCV infections in patients with IBD. CONCLUSION: HCV showed an increasing trend in Korean patients with IBD, especially those with Crohn's disease. Corticosteroids use is a risk factor for hepatitis in patients with IBD.