Relationship between hepatitis C infection and treatment status and COVID-19-related hospitalizations in Georgia.

OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the impact of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and treatment status on COVID-19-related hospitalizations in Georgia. METHODS:We analyzed 2020-2021 Georgian health-registry data for COVID-19-positive individuals and categorized by HCV infection and treatment status. Logistic regression was used to assess the strengths of the associations. RESULTS:Treated HCV individuals had lower odds of COVID-19-related hospitalization compared to anti-HCV-negatives, while untreated HCV-viremic and anti-HCV-positive non-viremic individuals had higher odds. CONCLUSIONS:HCV treatment prior to COVID-19 infection was associated with lower odds of COVID-19-related hospitalization, highlighting the benefits of HCV management in the context of the pandemic.