"HCV is transmitted primarily through percutaneous (parenteral) exposure that can result from injection-drug use, needle stick injuries, and inadequate infection control in health-care settings. Much less often, HCV transmission occurs among HIV-positive persons, especially MSM, as a result of sexual contact with an HCV-infected partner (30, 31), among persons who receive tattoos in unregulated settings (31), and among infants born to HCV-infected mothers (32). After adjustment for populations not sampled in the NHANES household surveys, such as incarcerated and homeless populations, an estimated 3.5 million persons are living with HCV infection in the United States (28).
"A single positive anti-HCV result cannot distinguish between acute and chronic HCV infection or between current or resolved (cleared) HCV infection. Approximately 75%–85% of newly infected adults and adolescents develop chronic HCV infection (33)."
"Viral Hepatitis Surveillance - United States, 2014," (Atlanta, GA: US Centers for Disease Control Division of Viral Hepatitis), Sept. 22, 2016.
