Hepatitis C Infection Early In Life Rarely Serious

Hepatitis C (HCV) infection acquired early in life rarely, if ever, progresses to the liver-scarring disease cirrhosis, new research suggests. HCV infection during adulthood is associated with a higher risk of progression to cirrhosis within 20 years than that acquired earlier in life, senior investigator Dr. Alessandro Remo Zanetti and colleagues note in medical journal Hepatology. However, most studies of disease progression rarely encompassed more than 20 years of follow-up.