BACKGROUND: People living with hepatitis C infection (HCV) have a significant impact on the global healthcare system, with high rates of inpatient service use. Direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) have the potential to alleviate this burden; however, the evidence on the impact of HCV infection and hospital outcomes is undetermined. This systematic review aims to assess this research gap, including how DAAs may modify the relationship between HCV infection and hospital-related outcomes.

METHODS: We searched five databases up to August 2022 to identify relevant studies evaluating the impact of HCV infection on hospital-related outcomes. We created an electronic database of potentially eligible articles, removed duplicates, and then independently screened titles, abstracts, and full-text articles.

RESULTS

A total of 57 studies were included. Analysis of the included studies found an association between HCV infection and increased number of hospitalizations, length of stay, and readmissions. There was less consistent evidence of a relationship between HCV and in-hospital mortality. Only four studies examined the impact of DAAs, which showed that DAAs were associated with a reduction in hospitalizations and mortality. In the 14 studies available among people living with HIV, HCV coinfection similarly increased hospitalization, but there was less evidence for the other hospital-related outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS: There is good to high-quality evidence that HCV negatively impacts hospital-related outcomes, primarily through increased hospitalizations, length of stay, and readmissions. Given the paucity of studies on the effect of DAAs on hospital outcomes, future research is needed to understand their impact on hospital-related outcomes.