Epidemiological aspects of HCV infection in HIV-infected individuals in Piauí State, Northeast Brazil.

In this study, the prevalence, genotypic frequency, and risk factors for HCV infection in 768 patients infected with HIV were determined. Fifty-two (6.77 %) HIV-positive individuals had anti-HCV antibodies and 26 (3.39 %) had HCV-RNA. Genotyping results indicated that all RT-PCR samples from patients infected with HCV belonged to genotype 1. Multivariate analysis revealed an association of HIV-HCV coinfection with drug use and having received blood transfusions before 1994. The relatively low prevalence of HCV infection in the HIV-positive population in that region may be a consequence of the small number of drug users in the sample, despite a strong association between HCV infection and drug use.