Slovenia with lowest hepatitis C occurrence in EU

With a hepatitis C management strategy in place since 1997, one of the first in the world, Slovenia has been successfully testing for HCV for 25 years now, making testing easily available, Matičič of the Infectious Diseases Clinic at UKC Ljubljana said on Monday. Patients get immediate specialist treatment with state-of-the art medicines, she added.

While only a quarter of HCV-infected people have been identified in Europe, and out of those only two thirds are receiving treatment, Slovenia's results are much better as only just over 1,000 undiagnosed patients need to be identified and treated thanks to the "test and treat" strategy the county has implemented in recent years.

Ahead of World Hepatitis Day, held under the slogan One Life, One Liver, Slovenian infectious disease specialists want to raise public awareness of how important it is to detect and treat hepatitides B and C early on to prevent cancer and liver failure.

With its innovative approach to treating HCV, Slovenia was the first to fully eradicate the disease in certain patient groups, such as hemophilliacs, patients on dialysis, organ transplant recipients and HIV patients. It also boasts a globally-recognized HCV management model for drug users who are part of the opioid substitution treatment programmes.

Together with the Health Ministry, the Infectious Diseases Clinic is also getting ready to set up a mobile unit which will provide comprehensive HCV treatment for the most at-risk and vulnerable groups.

They are also calling for people to undergo anonymous, free-of-charge testing for HCV on Thursday and Friday in Ljubljana.

Last year Slovenia also recorded the largest outbreak of acute hepatitis A in this millennium. The virus was mainly transmitted through sexual intercourse between men and was introduced to Slovenia from Hungary. Out of 55 patients, more than half required hospital treatment and two patients nearly experienced liver failure.

As for hepatitis B, only 80% of Slovenian children were vaccinated against it in the 2020-2021 school year, which places Slovenia among the countries with the lowest vaccination rate among children in Europe.

Because a rising trend of hepatitis D infections has been detected in many EU countries, Slovenia has introduced a routine testing for the disease in all those who have previously been diagnosed with hepatitis B. Two patients were diagnosed with an advanced form of the disease and given newly-developed drugs to treat it.

A rising number of acute hepatitis E infections has also been detected in Slovenia, mainly as a consequence of eating food containing poorly thermally treated pork or game. The disease can damage organs, mostly kidneys, and the nervous system, causing paralysis and other life-threatening complications.