Injecting drug use and hepatitis C virus infection independently increase biomarkers of inflammatory disease risk which are incompletely restored by curative direct-acting antiviral therapy

ConclusionElevated levels of inflammatory and chronic disease biomarkers in PWID suggest an increased risk of chronic morbidities such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. HCV infection in PWID poses an additional disease burden, amplified by the incomplete reversal of immune dysfunction following DAA therapy. These findings highlight the need for heightened clinical surveillance of PWID for chronic inflammatory diseases, particularly those with a history of HCV infection.
Source: Frontiers in Immunology - Category: Allergy & Immunology Source Type: research