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Association between chronic hepatitis C virus infection and low muscle mass in US adults
Author(s) -
Gowda C.,
Compher C.,
Amorosa V. K.,
Lo Re V.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of viral hepatitis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.329
H-Index - 100
eISSN - 1365-2893
pISSN - 1352-0504
DOI - 10.1111/jvh.12273
Subject(s) - medicine , odds ratio , national health and nutrition examination survey , hepatitis c virus , confidence interval , chronic hepatitis , hepatitis c , cross sectional study , logistic regression , chronic liver disease , chronic infection , percentile , gastroenterology , immunology , virus , pathology , population , environmental health , cirrhosis , immune system , statistics , mathematics
Summary Given that low muscle mass can lead to worse health outcomes in patients with chronic infections, we assessed whether chronic hepatitis C virus ( HCV ) infection was associated with low muscle mass among US adults. We performed a cross‐sectional study of the National Health Examination and Nutrition Study (1999–2010). Chronic HCV ‐infected patients had detectable HCV RNA . Low muscle mass was defined as <10th percentile for mid‐upper arm circumference ( MUAC ). Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine adjusted odds ratios (a OR s) with 95% confidence intervals ( CI s) of low muscle mass associated with chronic HCV . Among 18 513 adults, chronic HCV ‐infected patients ( n = 303) had a higher prevalence of low muscle mass than uninfected persons (13.8% vs 6.7%; a OR , 2.22; 95% CI , 1.39–3.56), and this association remained when analyses were repeated among persons without significant liver fibrosis (a OR , 2.12; 95% CI , 1.30–3.47). This study demonstrates that chronic HCV infection is associated with low muscle mass, as assessed by MUAC measurements, even in the absence of advanced liver disease.