Hepatitis C and atherosclerosis: inflammatory interplay

Abstract

Atherosclerosis along with viral hepatitis C are major health problems. Despite the fact that atherosclerosis is usually associated only with blood vessels, and hepatitis C with the liver, these diseases have a number of common features. The pathogenesis of atherosclerosis includes many different mechanisms, one of the central roles among which is inflammation. The importance of inflammation for the development of hepatitis is also difficult to overestimate. The precise mechanisms of action by which HCV stimulates development of atherosclerosis are still being investigated. Both direct and indirect consequences of HCV infection, such as persistent inflammation and impairments in glucose and lipid metabolism, are well known atherogenic conditions. In this review, we have tried to describe the interaction between hepatitis C and atherosclerosis, with a particular focus on inflammation.