@article{ref1,
title="Cause of death in individuals with chronic HBV and/or HCV infection, a nationwide community‐based register study",
journal="Journal of viral hepatitis",
year="2008",
author="Duberg, Ann‐Sofi and Törner, Anna and Daviðsdóttir, Lóa and Aleman, Soo and Blaxhult, Anders and Svensson, Åke and Hultcrantz, Rolf and Bäck, Erik and Ekdahl, Karl",
volume="15",
number="7",
pages="538-550",
abstract="Summary.  Studies on chronic viral hepatitis and mortality have often been made on selected populations or in high-endemic countries. The aim of this study was to investigate the causes of death and the mortality rates in the nationwide cohorts of people chronically infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV) and/or hepatitis C virus (HCV) in Sweden, a low-endemic country. All notifications on chronic HBV infection and HCV infection 1990–2003 were linked to the Cause of Death Register. A total of 9517 people with chronic HBV infection, 34 235 people with HCV infection and 1601 with chronic HBV–HCV co-infection were included, and the mean observation times were 6.4, 6.3 and 7.9 years, respectively. The mortality in the cohorts was compared with age- and gender-specific mortality in the general population and standardized mortality ratios (SMR) were calculated. All-cause mortality was significantly increased, SMR 2.3 (HBV), 5.8 (HCV) and 8.5 (HBV–HCV), with a great excess liver-related mortality in all cohorts, SMR 21.7, 35.5 and 46.2, respectively. In HCV and HBV–HCV infected there was an increased mortality due to drug-related psychiatric diagnoses (SMR: 20.7 and 27.6) and external causes (SMR: 12.4 and 11.4), predominantly at younger age. To conclude, this study demonstrated an increased all-cause mortality, with a great excess mortality from liver disease, in all cohorts. In people with HCV infection the highest excess mortality in younger ages was from drug-related and external reasons.<p />",
language="",
issn="1352-0504",
doi="10.1111/j.1365-2893.2008.00982.x",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2893.2008.00982.x"
}