Hepatitis C Infection Tied to Diabetes Risk

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - There appears to be a connection between infection with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, Italian researchers report.

Dr. Alessandro Antonelli of the University of Pisa and colleagues note in the medical journal Diabetes Care that there have been some reports of a link between type 2 diabetes and hepatitis C but at least one large study did not confirm this.

To investigate further, the researchers studied 564 patients with hepatitis C, 82 with hepatitis B virus infection, and a comparison group of 302 matched but uninfected "controls."

The team found that 12.6 percent of the HCV patients had diabetes, significantly more than the 4.9 percent of the hepatitis B patients or the 7 percent of the controls.

The data, say the researchers, suggest that hepatitis C-related liver disease is associated with diabetes at a stage when liver function is still largely preserved.

They also note that HCV patients with diabetes were significantly leaner, with a body mass index of 25.7 versus 29.7 for diabetics without hepatitis C. Their LDL cholesterol concentration was also lower.

The team calls for a study "to test whether antiviral therapy for HCV infection may prevent the appearance of type 2 diabetes."

SOURCE: Diabetes Care, October 2005.