Mobile Telemedicine for Treating Chronic Hepatitis C Among Rural People Who Inject Drugs: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

ABSTRACT:

Importance

Persons who inject drugs in the rural US have high rates of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and poor access to HCV testing, direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatment, and syringe services. Effective approaches to test and treat this population are needed to achieve national HCV elimination goals.

Objective

To test whether a mobile telemedicine-based HCV treatment intervention increases HCV treatment initiation and viral clearance and decreases sharing of injection equipment among rural persons who inject drugs.

Design, setting, and participants

This open-label, randomized, parallel-group clinical trial compared mobile telemedicine care (MTC) for HCV treatment with enhanced usual care (EUC), both integrated with van-based syringe services, from April

SUBMITTER: Friedmann PD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12836132 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature