Hepatitis C in two general practices in Flanders, Belgium: is there a need to reconsider current screening recommendations?

: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a major cause of acute and chronic liver disease (e.g. cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma).

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) prevalence estimation in the adult general population in Belgium : a meta-analysis.

Background And Study Aims: Although multiple HCV prevalence studies were recently performed in the general population from Belgium, they suffer from a lack of geographical representativeness, an insufficient number of participants or a lack of inclusion of high prevalence groups. The aim of this study is to provide robust information on the HCV burden.

Methods: Recently performed HCV prevalence studies in the general, adult population were included in this study, based on well-defined selection criteria.