Validation of a Simplified Laboratory-Based HCV Clearance Definition Using New York City Hepatitis C Program and Surveillance Data

Christina S Hwang; Martha P Montgomery; Diana I Diaz Munoz; Shaoman Yin; Eyasu H Teshale; Angelica Bocour

doi:10.1097/PHH.0000000000002077

Validation of a Simplified Laboratory-Based HCV Clearance Definition Using New York City Hepatitis C Program and Surveillance Data

J Public Health Manag Pract. 2024 Oct 16. doi: 10.1097/PHH.0000000000002077. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Christina S Hwang¹, Martha P Montgomery, Diana I Diaz Munoz, Shaoman Yin, Eyasu H Teshale, Angelica Bocour

Affiliation

¹ Author Affiliations: Bureau of Hepatitis, HIV and STI, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, New York City, New York (Mss Hwang, Diaz Munoz, and Bocour); and National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention at US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia (Drs Montgomery, Yin, and Teshale).

PMID: 39413771
DOI: 10.1097/PHH.0000000000002077

Abstract

Context: Laboratory-based hepatitis C virus (HCV) clearance cascades are an important tool for health departments to track progress toward HCV elimination, but a laboratory-based definition of HCV clearance has not yet been validated.

Objective: To compare agreement between a laboratory-based HCV clearance definition with a clinical cure definition.

Design: Observational.

Setting: New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene HCV surveillance system data and New York City hepatitis C linkage-to-care program data.

Participants: Linkage-to-care program participants who were diagnosed with hepatitis C and enrolled in the linkage-to-care program from July 1, 2016, through June 30, 2020.

Main outcome measure: Percent agreement between a laboratory-based HCV clearance definition (surveillance system) and a clinical cure definition (program data).

Results: Among 591 program participants with known treatment outcome, the laboratory-based HCV clearance definition and clinical cure definition were concordant in 573 cases (97%).

Conclusions: A laboratory-based HCV clearance definition based on public health surveillance data can be a reliable source for monitoring HCV elimination.