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Transmission (HCV) "Safer Sex Practice for Chronic HCV Carriers: Is It Necessary?"
A.R. Davis and A.M. Kowalik.. Affiliations not provided..
According to an abstract submitted by the authors to the First Australasian
Conference on Hepatitis C, held March 16-18, 1997, in Sydney, Australia, "The
efficiency of sexual transmission of Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is an important
issue for individuals with HCV infection and the role of sexual transmission
in the epidemiology of HCV infection continues to be debated. In particular,
whether HCV-discordant couples in established monogamous relationships should
be advised to use condoms is controversial. We have routinely offered testing
of the current heterosexual partner to Sydney donors identified anti-HCV positive
attending for follow-up since January 1994. As at September 1996, the partners
of 40 such donors had been tested. Only one of the 40 partners tested anti-HCV
positive. This partner had an independent established parenteral risk factor
for HCV infection. The median duration of the couples sexual relationships was
five years (range four months to 42 years). Thirty-eight couples reported rarely
or never using condoms in their sexual relationships; two couples reported using
condoms for the majority but not all of their sexual relationships. Our findings
support larger epidemiological studies in blood donors, multiply transfused
patients and recipients of contaminated Rh anti-D immunoglobulin which suggest
that heterosexual transmission of HCV is extremely uncommon. We counsel couples
in established monogamous relationships that it is probably unnecessary to modify
their sexual practice, other than to consider using condoms during menstruation,
anal intercourse or when genital ulceration is present."
Blood Weekly, September 29, 1997, Research from Conferences,
p. 19.
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