Elecsys® Anti‑HCV II is an immunoassay for the in vitro qualitative detection of antibodies to HCV in human serum and plasma15.
Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is an inflammatory liver disease caused by infection with the hepatitis C virus (HCV), which can cause both acute and chronic hepatitis1. HCV is a member of the Flaviviridae family and has a single-stranded, positive-sense RNA genome, which encodes 3 structural and 7 non-structural proteins2,3. HCV is classified into eight genotypes with a total of currently 90 subtypes4.
Hepatitis C represents a major global health burden: approximately 100 – 150 million people worldwide have been infected with HCV, of which 71 million live with chronic hepatitis C1,5. A significant number of chronically infected will develop liver cirrhosis or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). About 400,000 people die each year from hepatitis C-related liver diseases1. Due to the generally asymptomatic nature of the disease, hepatitis C infection remains heavily undiagnosed6.