OP-4 IMPLEMENTATION OF A RE-LINKAGE TO CARE STRATEGY IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC HEPATITIS C WHO WERE LOST TO FOLLOW-UP IN LATIN AMERICA

Introduction and Objectives: To achieve WHO's goal of eliminating HCV, innovative strategies must be designed to diagnose and treat more patients. This study aimed to describe an implementation strategy to identify patients with HCV who were lost to follow-up (LTFU) and offer them re-linkage to Figure 1. Analysis of global DNA methylation. A) Representative dot blot using anti-5mC which recognizes global methylated DNA, anti-IgG as negative control and methylene blue staining as total DNA loading control. B) Graphs shows mean ± standard deviation of 5mC densitometry brand intensity of study groups. C) Graph that represents the percentage of global methylation of the DNA analyzed with ELISA.A one-way ANOVA statistical test and a Tukey post hoc test were performed. Group NT: only received vehicle; Group HCC: damage group induced by weekly administration of DEN and 2-AAF for 12 weeks; and Group HCC/PFD: which received the same treatment as Group HCC, plus PFD (300 mg/kg) (**p<0.005)Figure 1. Analysis of global DNA methylation. A) Representative dot blot using anti-5mC which recognizes global methylated DNA, anti-IgG as negative control and methylene blue staining as total DNA loading control. B) Graphs shows mean ± standard deviation of 5mC densitometry brand intensity of study groups. C) Graph that represents the percentage of global methylation of the DNA analyzed with ELISA.A one-way ANOVA statistical test and a Tukey post hoc test were performed. Group NT: only received vehicle; Group HCC: damage group induced by weekly administration of DEN and 2-AAF for 12 weeks; and Group HCC/PFD: which received the same treatment as Group HCC, plus PFD (300 mg/kg) (**p<0.005)Figure 1. Analysis of global DNA methylation. A) Representative dot blot using anti-5mC which recognizes global methylated DNA, anti-IgG as negative control and methylene blue staining as total DNA loading control. B) Graphs shows mean ± standard deviation of 5mC densitometry brand intensity of study groups. C) Graph that represents the percentage of global methylation of the DNA analyzed with ELISA.A one-way ANOVA statistical test and a Tukey post hoc test were performed. Group NT: only received vehicle; Group HCC: damage group induced by weekly administration of DEN and 2-AAF for 12 weeks; and Group HCC/PFD: which received the same treatment as Group HCC, plus PFD (300 mg/kg) (**p<0.005) Materials and Methods: We conducted an implementation study utilizing a strategy to contact patients with HCV who were not under regular follow-up in 45 centers from 13 Latin American countries. Patients with HCV were identified by the international classification of diseases (ICD-9/10) or equivalent. Medical records were then reviewed to confirm the diagnosis of chronic HCV infection defined by anti-HCV+ and detectable HCV-RNA. Identified patients who were not under follow-up by a liver specialist were contacted by telephone or email and offered a medical reevaluation. Results: A total of 10364 patients were classified to have HCV. After reviewing their medical charts, 1349 (13%) had undetectable HCV-RNA or were wrongly coded (figure). Overall, 9015 (86.9%) individuals were identified with chronic HCV infection. A total of 5096 (56.5%) patients were under routine HCV care and 3919 (43.5%) had been LTFU. We were able to contact 1617 (41.3%) of the 3919 patients who were LTFU at the primary medical institution, of which 427 (26.4%) were cured at different institutions or were dead. Of the remaining patients, 906 (76.1%) were candidates for retrieval. Overall, patients who were LTFU were younger (58.7 vs. 61.1 years; p<0.001), were more likely to be men (57.4% vs. 49.5%; p<0.001), and to have a concomitant infection of HIV (13.8% vs. 7.3%; p<0.001) and HBV (3.1% vs. 1.7%; p<0.001). Conclusions: In our cohort, about 1 out of 4 patients with chronic HCV who were LTFU were candidates to receive treatment. This strategy has the potential to be effective and accessible and significantly impacts the HCV care cascade. (NCT04470271)