Incidence Rate and Number of Cases of Acute Hepatitis C Infections in the US

"Acute

"Overall

"During 2023, a total of 4,966 acute hepatitis C cases were reported to CDC by 47 states and the District of Columbia, corresponding to an estimated 69,000 acute infections (95% CI: 54,600–235,400) after adjusting for case underascertainment and underreporting (see Technical Notes).5 The reported case count corresponds to a rate of 1.5 cases per 100,000 population. Following a decade of increasing rates from 2011–2021, the rate remained relatively stable from 2021–2023. The highest rates of acute hepatitis C (per 100,000 population) were reported in West Virginia (6.4), Florida (6.3), and Kentucky (5.9).

"A total of 745 patients, or 39% of the 1,901 cases for which hospitalization information was available, were hospitalized due to acute hepatitis C during 2023.

"Demographics and risk factors

"The highest rate of reported acute hepatitis C cases was among persons aged 30–39 (3.4 cases per 100,000 population). From 2022–2023, the rate of reported cases of acute hepatitis C remained relatively stable among those aged 29 years and younger and increased slightly among those aged 40 years and older. Most acute hepatitis C cases were reported among males (67%). While the rate of reported cases among females has remained stable since 2018, there was a substantial increase among males from 2018–2020; since then, the rate among males has consistently been ~2.0 times as high compared to females.

"The rate of reported acute hepatitis C cases was highest among non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) persons (3.5 cases per 100,000 population). All racial and ethnic groups, except non-Hispanic White persons, experienced increases in the rate of reported cases from 2022–2023. The rate of reported acute hepatitis C cases among non-Hispanic AI/AN persons was 2.4 times as high compared to non-Hispanic White persons.

"Among the 4,966 reported cases in 2023, 43% had some risk behavior or exposure information available; among those with data available, 59% had an identified risk. During 2023, the most commonly reported risk was injection drug use (43% of 1,736 cases with information available)."