Some don't seek hepatitis C treatment

NEW YORK, Nov. 10 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say patients with more difficult to treat forms of hepatitis C are half as likely to get treatment as those with easier to treat forms.

Dr. Thomas McGinn of Mount Sinai School of Medicine said the researchers also found marital status also affected whether patients chose treatment for hepatitis C.

"Overall, in general only about 30 percent of hepatitis C patients choose to initiate treatment for the disease," the senior author said in a statement. "It's a huge problem that needs to be addressed. This study confirms that genotype is a major barrier to treatment. We hope these findings will lead to changes in how physicians approach patient care in a way that increases the rate of treatment initiation."

The researchers analyzed all patients referred to Mount Sinai's Primary Care Treatment and Screening Program for Hepatitis C between January 2003 and May 2007.

In this study, of the 168 treatment-eligible patients, 41 began treatment and 127 did not -- or 24 percent sought treatment. Patients with genotypes 1 and 4 of the disease, which are less responsive to treatment, were less likely to initiate treatment, as were unmarried patients and patients with multiple diseases, or medical comorbidities.

The findings are published in the of Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved.