EMCDDA Case study 5 — Expanding HCV screening and hepatitis treatment and care for PWID to harm reduction centres. In Hepatitis C: new models of care for drugs services. (Book Chapter)

July 01, 2019 By:
  • Devaux C
  • Arendt V.

The aim of this project was to expand screening and treatment for HCV among PWID in Luxembourg. An intervention research project was implemented at three harm reduction sites and at the national supervised drug consumption facility in the city of Luxembourg, offering HCV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV) and syphilis serologies and viral load, liver biomarkers, and a transient elastography (non‐invasive assessment of liver stiffness) for people currently injecting drugs. To accelerate access to treatment and limit HCV transmission among this key risk group, the provision of direct‐acting antiviral treatment and virological follow‐up for PWID with HCV infection was subsequently initiated at the harm reduction centres and the national drug consumption facility. The study demonstrated the feasibility of offering comprehensive HCV care at these low‐threshold agencies for PWID, including proactive screening for a wider range of infectious diseases among this population.

2019 Jul. EMCDDA, 2019. p.43-49. ISBN NA.
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