With an estimated 216,000 individuals chronically infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the UK (England 161,000, Northern Ireland 4000, Scotland 39,000, Wales 12,000), it remains a major public health problem; and HCV-related end-stage liver disease and mortality continue to increase. The Health Protection Agency states that it is necessary to sustain and enhance efforts to raise awareness, prevent new infections, increase diagnosis, and treat more individuals with the infection.
With this in mind, the Roche Elecsys anti-HCV II assay can play an effective part in this strategy, as it demonstrates the presence of antibodies against HCV during acute and chronic stages of disease, and after a passed infection.
Owing to the high rate of asymptomatic infection, clinical diagnosis of hepatitis C is difficult and screening assays are of major importance. The Roche Elecsys anti-HCV II assay provides 100% clinical sensitivity for all known genotypes, leading to early detection of infection and patient-oriented decision-making. Once detected, HCV can be treated with antiviral medicines that are designed to stop the virus from multiplying inside the body and can prevent liver damage.
With high specificity in blood donors (99.84%), pregnant women and dialysis patients, use of the Elecsys anti-HCV II assay has increased laboratory testing efficiency. To optimise workflows and provide operational cost-savings, the ready-to-use liquid reagents have a long onboard stability of 31 days on all Roche immunoassay platforms.
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