P-60 DETERMINATION OF THE PREVALENCE OF HEPATITIS C VIRUS USING THE RAPID MONTEBIO HCV TEST IN A HIGH-RISK POPULATION OF HOSPITAL DEL SALVADOR, CHILE.

Abstract

Introduction and Objectives: There are 71 million infected in the world and approximately 4 million in Latin America. In Chile, it is estimated that there are approximately 35-50 thousand infected, of which less than 10% have been identified and treated. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of anti-HCV in patients at high risk of infection using a rapid test for HCV. Materials and Methods: Cross-sectional and descriptive study, which examined 502 samples of capillary blood from patients of the Hospital del Salvador, based on risk factors for Hepatitis C. The commercial Montebio HCV test was used, which reports a sensitivity and specificity of 99%. Results: Of the total of 502 samples, 52.9% (266) corresponded to women. The average age was 51.5 years; the main risk factor was being older than 45 years (45.8%, 230/502), followed by being exposed to health personnel (34.5%, 173/502). 99.4% of the tests were validly performed. The positivity was 0.59% (3/502). Conclusions: The implementation of a rapid test as screening is a useful and cost-effective tool in populations with risk factors. In the population studied, there is a higher prevalence than that reported in other series.