Most hepatitis C infections in Ireland are acquired through sharing equipment when injecting drugs.

Risk factors p.5

Information on most likely risk factor was reported for 43% (n=251) of the cases of hepatitis C notified in 2018. Just under two thirds (64%, n=160) of these were people who inject drugs (PWID). Snorting cocaine was reported as the most likely risk factor for infection for a further two cases. The proportion of cases of hepatitis C attributed to injecting drug use has decreased in recent years (82% between 2007 and 2014, 75% in 2015, 66% from 2016 to 2018). However, this trend should be interpreted with caution as risk factor data were available for less than half of cases notified over the past four years