| confirmation of hepatitis c virus antibody in blood donors. | of 103,203 donations collected in scotland and northern ireland over a 3-month period and screened for hcv antibody by ortho or abbott second-generation elisas, 340 were found repeatedly reactive. supplementary testing with riba-2 resulted in 77 being classified as positive, 130 as indeterminate, and 133 as negative. pcr analysis of the positives and indeterminates indicated viraemia in 65 (84%) of the positives and 7 (5.5%) of the indeterminates. to determine if pcr analysis could be eliminated ... | 1993 | 7505306 |
| detection of three types of hepatitis c virus in blood donors: investigation of type-specific differences in serologic reactivity and rate of alanine aminotransferase abnormalities. | the serologic reactivity and epidemiology associated with different hepatitis c virus (hcv) variants were investigated in a cohort of 113 anti-hcv-positive donors. in scotland, hcv type 1 accounted for one-half of all infections; 40 percent of subjects were infected with hcv type 3, and the remainder were infected with type 2. reactivity with the ns-4-encoded antigens in the first-generation anti-c100 assay was absent in 68 percent of donors infected with types 2 and 3, as compared with 10 perce ... | 1993 | 7678709 |
| a national survey of genitourinary medicine clinic attenders provides little evidence of sexual transmission of hepatitis c virus infection. | to determine the prevalence and genetic diversity of hepatitis c virus in genitourinary medicine clinic attenders and to assess the extent of sexual transmission of the virus. | 2003 | 12902580 |
| detection of hcv and hiv-1 antibody negative infections in scottish and northern ireland blood donations by nucleic acid amplification testing. | to reduce the risk of transfusion-transmissible viruses entering the blood supply, the nucleic acid amplification testing (nat) was implemented to screen scottish and northern irish blood donations in minipools. after 5 years of nat for hepatitis c virus (hcv) and 2 years for human immunodeficiency virus-1 (hiv-1), the yield of serologically negative, nucleic acid positive 'window donations' and cost-benefit of nat is under review. | 2005 | 16146504 |
| sharps injuries in uk health care: a review of injury rates, viral transmission and potential efficacy of safety devices. | to review the literature on sharps injuries and occupational bloodborne virus transmission in health care in the uk and the worldwide evidence for injury prevention of sharps safety devices. | 2006 | 17065314 |
| completed hepatitis c lookback in northern ireland. | hepatitis c virus screening of blood donors was introduced in september 1991 using a second-generation enzyme-linked immunoassay (elisa) and subsequent confirmatory testing with immunoblot (riba) and polymerase chain reaction (pcr). in april 1995 a lookback exercise was announced by the department of health, the purpose of which was to trace, counsel, investigate and, if necessary, treat individuals who may have been infected with hcv through blood and blood products prior to screening. a total ... | 1997 | 9510923 |
| is the recent emergence of mephedrone injecting in the united kingdom associated with elevated risk behaviours and blood borne virus infection? | the recent, and rapid, emergence of injection of the short-acting stimulant mephedrone (4-methylmethcathione) has resulted in concerns about increased infection risks among people who inject drugs (pwid). data from the bio-behavioural surveillance of pwid in the united kingdom were analysed to examine the impact of mephedrone injection on infections among pwid. during the year preceding the survey, 8.0% of pwid (163/2,047) had injected mephedrone. in multivariable analyses, those injecting mephe ... | 2016 | 27195614 |
| male idus who have sex with men in england, wales and northern ireland: are they at greater risk of bloodborne virus infection and harm than those who only have sex with women? | in the uk, although transmission of hiv among injecting drug user (idus) has been limited since the 1980s, idus and men who have sex with men (msm) have higher hiv and hepatitis c virus (hcv) prevalences than the general population. msm who are also idus (msm-idus) may therefore have a higher risk of infection than male idus who only have sex with women. | 2012 | 22628667 |
| factors associated with recently acquired hepatitis c virus infection in people who inject drugs in england, wales and northern ireland: new findings from an unlinked anonymous monitoring survey. | monitoring infections and risk in people who inject drugs (pwid) is important for informing public health responses. in 2011, a novel hepatitis c antibody (anti-hcv) avidity-testing algorithm to identify samples compatible with recent primary infection was introduced into a national surveillance survey. pwid are recruited annually, through >60 needle-and-syringe programmes and prescribing services. of the 980 individuals that could have been at risk of hcv infection, there were 20 (2%) samples t ... | 2015 | 25119383 |
| early experience with chronic hepatitis c in northern ireland: epidemiology and response to monotherapy. | chronic hepatitis c virus (hcv) infection has become a major health problem affecting an estimated 170 million people worldwide. the epidemiology of hcv and its response to treatment in northern ireland has not been described before. our aims were to determine the epidemiology, histological stage, suitability for treatment and response to treatment in patients with hepatitis c presenting to one clinic in northern ireland. all patients were prospectively recruited with hepatitis c attending the l ... | 2004 | 15244122 |