Genotypes of HCV in Bangladesh: Experience from a Tertiary Centre

Introduction: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a leading cause of chronic liver disease worldwide including Bangladesh. Approximately 0.84% of our population is infected with HCV. Genotypes of HCV are important in the determination of treatment duration and in predicting the response to treatment in HCV infection. Methodology: 61 consecutive patients who presented to us with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) and who could afford treatment and having no features of decompensation were included in the study. Results: Of the 61 study subjects, 46 were males and 15 females. They were between 12 and 70 years of age. Of them 41% had genotype 3, 31% had mixed genotypes 3 + 4 and 21% had genotype 1. Patients also had genotypes 2, 4, 5 and mixed genotypes 5 + 6, the figure being 1.6% in each case. Conclusion: Genotype 3 is the commonest HCV genotype in Bangladesh, while we also have a high prevalence of mixed HCV genotypes.