Under the skin, there’s a deadly virus killing many Virginians, and many people are unaware they’re sick.
Virginia Department of Health officials are warning both the young and old to be tested for chronic Hepatitis C, a viral infection of the liver, that kills quietly and slowly.
“People often do not realize that they have it,” said Dr. William Berg, director of the Hampton and Peninsula Health Districts about Hepatitis C. “They may go many many years without any sort of symptoms.”
Chronic Hepatitis C is the most commonly transmitted communicable disease in the Commonwealth of Virginia, according to data on the Virginia Department of Health’s website.
In 2016, the viral infection was the most commonly transmitted communicable disease in 123 of the state’s 133 localities, the report states.
“I think we’re going to continue to see a trend of increasing cases of Hepatitis C,” Berg said of the Historic Triangle.
In Williamsburg, 41 people were reportedly diagnosed with the condition in 2016 putting the city’s transmission rate at nearly double the commonwealth average.
James City and York counties transmission rates were one tenth of Williamsburg’s rate in 2016.
A silent killer
Chronic Hepatitis C often has no symptoms. Infected persons often “do not look or feel sick,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Twenty to 30 percent of infected persons have symptoms — fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain — leaving more than half of the infected without a clue they’re infected.
The disease develops into a chronic condition that causes liver damage, and sometimes liver cancer.
According to the CDC, about 52 Americans die daily from Hepatitis C related liver disease, that translates to nearly 19,000 Americans annually.
Between 2009 and 2014 the number of Hepatitis C cases was consistently near 6,000 annually. Virginia Department of Health data indicates there were 6,675 cases of Hepatitis C in 2014. The number grew to 8,193 cases in 2015.
By 2016, the number of cases had increased about 70 percent since 2014 to 11,352 cases, according to Virginia Department of Health data.
Baby boomers and young folks
The increased case numbers have been driven by two factors: baby boomers and young folks, according to Berg.
When it comes to older Americans, Berg said it wasn’t entirely clear what’s spreading the disease. However, data show the disease is more proportionally present in the population.
While Berg expects the number of cases of the disease to increase in Virginia’s elderly population, a clear and present danger is the rapidly increasing transmission rate for young people.
Virginia residents aged 18 to 30 are at a higher risk level than other demographics due to opioid and intravenous drug addiction, according to Berg.
“We’re already seeing increased numbers of Hepatitis C cases in [people] aged 20 to 39,” Berg said.
Drug addiction and sex are factors
Hepatitis C is primarily spread through blood to blood contact, but can also be passed as a Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI). Even something as innocuous as sharing a razor or a toothbrush can, in rare instances, transmit the disease.
“There’s a syndemic between intravenous drug use, opioid drug use and Hepatitis C since needle sharing is the primary way Hepatitis C is transmitted,” Berg said.
A syndemic is two or more diseases that interact in a complementary way to one another, according to the CDC.
Drug addiction and Hepatitis C interact to create an even evermore lethal threat to Virginia, according to Berg.
People of particular risk for Hepatitis C include “anyone who has done injection drug use, or has had sex with multiple partners,” Berg said.
Despite the syndemic patterns of Hepatitis C, a major problem with the disease, according to Berg, is that many people are unaware they’re infected with the disease.
The Virginia Department of Health offers programs in health districts that provide testing for people of a “particular risk,” Berg said.
That’s why he’s encouraging both baby boomers, intravenous drug users, and young folks alike to get tested for the disease.
“People need to be tested,” Berg said.
