Hepatitis B and C Screening and Linkage to Care in Migrants From Endemic Countries in Barcelona Through a Community Action
Not, Anna (Institut Germans Trias i Pujol. Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol)
Ouaarab-Essadek, Hakima (Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron)
Montoro-Fernandez, Marcos (Agència de Salut Pública de Catalunya)
Treviño Maruri, Begoña (Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron)
Buti, Maria (Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron)
Morillas Cunill, Rosa Ma (Institut Germans Trias i Pujol. Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol)
Bordoy, Antoni E. (Institut Germans Trias i Pujol. Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol)
Folch, Cinta (Instituto de Salud Carlos III)
Majó, Xavier (Agència de Salut Pública de Catalunya)
Casabona-Barbarà, Jordi (Agència de Salut Pública de Catalunya)
Gómez i Prat, Jordi (Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron)
Martró, Elisa (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament de Genètica i de Microbiologia)

Data:	2025
Resum:	Background and Aims: Migrants from endemic areas are key populations for hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection screening in Europe. This study assessed the feasibility and outcomes of a community action that combined education, screening, and simplified access to care for migrants in Barcelona. Methods: Adult migrants from Pakistan, Romania, and Senegal were included from 2021 to 2023, through a community action involving education, an epidemiological questionnaire, and rapid testing for HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) and HCV antibodies. If positive, DBS samples were collected for laboratory confirmation. Viremic cases were referred to an International Health Unit (IHU). Results: Overall, 786 participants were included (346 from Pakistan, 304 from Senegal and 136 from Romania). Previous screening for HBV and HCV was 8. 0% and 7. 7%, respectively. HBsAg prevalence was 0. 9% for migrants from Pakistan, 8. 2% for those from Senegal and 1. 4% for those from Romania (n = 30/786, 23 new diagnoses). Among these, 69. 6% attended the IHU and were HBV-DNA positive, but none met treatment criteria. Anti-HCV prevalence was 3. 5%, 0. 7% and 1. 4% for migrants from Pakistan, Senegal and Romania, respectively (n = 16/768, 12 new diagnoses), and HCV-RNA prevalence was 0. 9%, 0. 3% and 0. 7%, respectively (N = 6, all new diagnoses); 4 (66. 6%) cases were linked to treatment and two were cured. Conclusions: This novel community action successfully reached migrants in a situation of vulnerability and provided them access to testing and care. The high prevalence observed and the limited self-knowledge of their HBV and HCV status justify targeted screening in these groups.
Ajuts:	Instituto de Salud Carlos III PI19/0568 Instituto de Salud Carlos III FI20/00211
Nota:	Altres ajuts: acords transformatius de la UAB
Drets:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, i la comunicació pública de l'obra, sempre que no sigui amb finalitats comercials, i sempre que es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original. No es permet la creació d'obres derivades.
Llengua:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Matèria:	Community action ; Dried blood spots (DBS) ; Hepatitis B virus (HBV) ; Hepatitis C virus (HCV) ; Migrants
Publicat a:	Liver international, Vol. 45 Núm. 6 (June 2025) , p. e70126, ISSN 1478-3231

DOI: 10.1111/liv.70126
PMID: 40351294

11 p, 646.4 KB

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