Clinicopathological assessment of hepatitis C virus infection in parenteral drug abusers.

Objectives: To determine the severity of hepatic histological lesions in anti-HCV positive parenteral drug abusers and to correlate it with the level of ALT activity and HCV RNA determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

Methods: Twenty-nine of the 62 anti-HCV-positive parenteral drug abusers who consecutively entered a Rehabilitation Center of Athens consented to liver biopsy and were prospectively and thoroughly followed up for a mean of 12.9 (range 6-33) months.