Increased Risk in Baby Boomer Population
People born from 1945 to 1965 are five times more likely to have hepatitis C. The CDC recommends baby boomers get tested for hepatitis C. While anyone can get hepatitis C, baby boomers have higher rates of hepatitis C due to exposure in the 1970s and 1980s, when the virus spread more easily. Medical equipment wasn’t always cleaned the way it is today, and blood wasn’t fully tested until 1992. Some people may also have gotten it from sharing needles, and many don’t know exactly how or when they were infected.
Learn more about viral hepatitis from the CDC.
Injection Drug Use
Sharing needles, syringes and other injection drug use equipment is the most common way people get hepatitis C in the United States. It can also be spread by other drug use equipment, such as items used for snorting, straws, cottons and cookers.
Past injection drug use is also a risk, even if you only injected one time or many years ago.
For more information, read the CDC's hepatitis C and injection drug use guide.
Healthcare Setting
HCV was commonly spread through blood transfusions and organ transplants before 1992 when widespread screening of the blood supply began. HCV was also spread through blood products created for patients with clotting problems made before 1987. HCV can be transmitted through needlestick injuries as well.
Perinatal Transmission
Infected mothers pass HCV to their infants about 6% of the time. The CDC recommends HCV testing for all infants and children born to pregnant women with current or probable HCV infection. Transmission risk is not related to the following:
- Delivery method, unless there is prolonged exposure to ruptured membranes and blood
- Breastfeeding, unless nipples are cracked and bleeding
Tattooing and Piercings
Transmission of HCV is possible when poor infection-control practices are used during tattooing or piercing, or if the tattoo or piercing instruments are not sterilized correctly. HCV can also live in tattoo inks, so they should never be reused. Unregulated tattooing and piercings are known to occur in prisons and other informal or unregulated settings.
Sexual Contact
The CDC states that sexual contact is an “inefficient means” of HCV transmission. However, sexual transmission is possible, and the number of HCV infections traced to sexual transmission is growing. The likelihood of HCV transmission through sexual contact is related to:
- The number of lifetime sexual partners
- A history of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), especially the presence of an STI at the time of exposure to HCV
- Sex involving tissue trauma leading to exposure to blood
Other Risks May Include:
- Sharing personal care items that may have come in contact with another person’s blood, such as razors, toothbrushes or nail clippers
- Vaccination practices involving multiple-use needles or immunization air guns
- Exposure of broken skin to HCV infected blood
- People with HIV
People with current or past risk behaviors should consider HCV testing and consult with a physician. HCV testing is currently not available at most public health clinics in Missouri. For information about HCV testing that is available, call the HCV Program Coordinator at 573-751-6439.
