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Objectives: Optimized diagnostic algorithms to detect active infections are crucial to achieving HCV elimination. We evaluated the cost effectiveness and sustainability of different algorithms for HCV active infection diagnosis, in a context of a high endemic country for HCV infection. Methods: A Markov disease progression model, simulating six diagnostic algorithms in the birth cohort 1969‐1989 over a 10‐year horizon from a healthcare perspective was used. Conventionally diagnosis of active HCV infection is through detection of antibodies (HCV‐Ab) detection followed by HCV‐RNA or HCV core antigen (HCV‐Ag) confirmatory testing either on a second sample or by same sample reflex testing. The undiagnosed and unconfirmed rates were evaluated by assays false negative estimates and each algorithm patients' drop‐off. Age, liver disease stages distribution, liver disease stage costs, treatment effectiveness and costs were used to evaluate the quality‐adjusted life‐years (QALYs) and the incremental cost‐effectiveness ratios (ICER). Results: The reference option was Rapid HCV‐Ab followed by second sample HCV‐Ag testing which produced the lowest QALYs (866,835 QALYs). The highest gains in health (QALYs=974,458) was obtained by HCV‐RNA reflex testing which produced a high cost‐effective ICER (€891/QALY). Reflex testing (same sample‐single visit) vs two patients' visits algorithms, yielded the highest QALYs and high cost‐effective ICERs (€566 and €635/QALY for HCV‐Ag and HCV‐RNA, respectively), confirmed in 99.9% of the 5,000 probabilistic simulations. Conclusions: Our data confirm, by a cost effectiveness point of view, the EASL and WHO clinical practice guidelines recommending HCV reflex testing as most cost effective diagnostic option vs other diagnostic pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This study aimed to investigate the role of resistance‐associated substitutions (RASs) to direct‐acting‐antivirals (DAAs) in HCV genotype 3 (GT3). Methods: Within the Italian VIRONET‐C network, a total of 539 GT3‐infected patients (417 DAA‐naïve and 135 DAA‐failures, of them, 13 at both baseline and failure) were analysed. Sanger sequencing of NS3/NS5A/NS5B was performed following home‐made protocols. Results: The majority of patients were male (79.4%), 91.4% were injection drug users, 49.3% were cirrhotic and 13.9% were HIV co‐infected. Phylogenetic analysis classified sequences as GT3a‐b‐g‐h (98%‐0.4%‐0.2%‐1.2%) respectively. Overall, 135 patients failed a DAA regimen: sofosbuvir (SOF)/daclatasvir (DCV) or velpatasvir (VEL)±ribavirin (RBV) (N = 91/15) and glecaprevir (G)/pibrentasvir (P) (N = 9). Moreover, 14.8% of patients were treated with suboptimal regimens for GT3: 3D ± RBV (Paritaprevir/r + Ombitasvir+Dasabuvir, N = 15), SOF + Simeprevir (SIM) (N = 1) or SOF/Ledipasvir (LDV) ± RBV (N = 4). RAS prevalence was 15.8% in DAA‐naïve patients. At failure, 81.5% patients showed at least one RAS: 11/25 (44.0%) in NS3, 109/135 (80.7%) in NS5A, 7/111 (6.3%) in NS5B SOF‐failures. In NS5A‐failures, Y93H RAS was the most prevalent (68.5% vs 5.1% DAA‐naïve, P <.001) followed by A30K (12.7% vs 2.8% in DAA‐naïve, P <.001). Analysing baseline samples, a higher prevalence of NS5A‐RASs was observed before treatment in DAA‐failures (5/13, 38.5%) vs DAA‐naïves (61/393, 15.5%, P =.04). Regarding 228 DAA‐naïve patients with an available outcome, 93.9% achieved a SVR. Interestingly, patients with baseline Y93H and/or A30K had SVR rate of 72.2% vs 95.7% for patients without NS5A‐RASs (P =.002). Conclusions: In this real‐life GT3 cohort, the majority of failures harboured resistant variants carrying NS5A‐RASs, the most frequent being Y93H. The presence of natural NS5A‐RASs before treatment was associated with failure. Further analyses are needed to confirm this observation, particularly for the new current regimens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inmates have higher HCV prevalence than general population, representing a fundamental step towards HCV eradication. Our aim was to compare 8‐week glecaprevir/pibrentasvir treatment in a case‐control study between incarcerated and free patients. Eleven Italian prisons and six outpatient clinics were involved. Patients were matched for sex, risk factors, METAVIR grade, HIV and HBV co‐infections. About 131 incarcerated (Group A) and 131 free patients (Group B) were included. Mean age was 43.0 ± 9.6 years and 42.8 ± 9.9 in Group A and B, respectively (P =.74). SVR rates were 96.2% and 99.2% in Group A and Group B respectively (P =.21). Five drop‐outs occurred in Group A, one in Group B. Incarceration, being PWIDs and OST were not associated with SVR reductions (CI 95%). In conclusion, imprisonment does not influence unplanned interruptions or SVR rates when receiving short‐term therapies. Short schedules with pangenotypic regimens could be a good approach to hard‐to‐reach populations, such as incarcerated patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]