Estimated prevalence of hepatitis B and C among immigrants in Canada.

Abstract

Background: Canada's Sexually Transmitted and Blood-borne Infections (STBBI) Action Plan and the Global Health Sector Strategies on STBBI highlight the importance of putting people at the centre of the health system response. Several key populations are disproportionately affected by viral hepatitis, including immigrants. However, there is a limited body of evidence on the burden of viral hepatitis among immigrants in Canada. We seek to address this gap by estimating the prevalence of hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV) infections among immigrants in Canada.

Methods: Using country- and region-specific publicly available data on the prevalence of HBV and HCV, we estimated the number of immigrants with chronic HBV (CHB), HCV antibodies, and chronic HCV (CHC) by multiplying the number of immigrants from Statistics Canada's 2021 census of population data by the corresponding publicly available country or region-of-origin prevalence, including lower and upper bounds. Each country was categorized as low (<2%) or intermediate-to-high (≥2%) based on published prevalence. To capture changes over time, estimates were stratified by time-period, where possible.

Results: In 2021, the estimated prevalence of viral hepatitis among all immigrants was 4.03% for CHB, 1.43% for HCV antibodies, and 0.78% for CHC. The estimated prevalence of CHB, HCV antibodies, and CHC was 0.91%, 0.96% and 0.52%, respectively, among immigrants from low-prevalence countries (<2%). It was 5.57%, 4.04%, and 2.20%, respectively, among immigrants from intermediate-to-high-prevalence countries (≥2%).

Conclusion: This is the first study to estimate the burden of HBV and HCV among immigrants at the national level in Canada. The results show that the prevalence of viral hepatitis among immigrants is higher than the general Canadian population. However, grouping all immigrants into one category masks important variation, and potentially over-estimates the burden of HBV and HCV among immigrants. Strengthening our understanding of hepatitis prevalence among immigrants can improve our ability to connect those in need to care and treatment services.