Massachusetts - danger of Hepatitis C

A team from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health reported that although cases of hepatitis C – a disease that causes liver failure and cancer – have been dropping across the general population, they started rising in youth aged 15 to 24 between 2002 and 2006, a trend that continued through 2009. "Of cases with available risk data, injection drug use was the most common risk factor for HCV transmission," the team wrote in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's weekly report.

"The increase in case reports appears to represent an epidemic of HCV infection related to IDU (injected drug use) among new populations of adolescents and young adults in Massachusetts," they added. The CDC mentioned that they have been monitoring the growth of Hepatitis C for decades, but the recent development amongst teenagers and young adult due to drug usage is "a disturbing trend." "Law enforcement data suggest this trend might be occurring in other states," CDC said basing their supposition on data showing increases in first-time heroin use.

Officials also report that in Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic, New England, New York/New Jersey, Southeast, and West Central regions drug usage is very popular among young users. Hepatitis C, an infection caused by a virus that attacks the liver, is considered one of the most serious of the hepatitis viruses. It is commonly passed through contaminated blood -- often through needles shared during illegal drug use. Out of 1,196 cases of Hepatitis C recorded, 72 percent were people who either had used or were still using drugs. According to the CDC, 3.2 million Americans are infected. Most people who are newly infected have no symptoms.

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