There appears to be a connection between infection with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Researchers from the University of Pisa, Italy, studied 564 patients with hepatitis C, 82 with hepatitis B virus infection, and a comparison group of 302 matched but uninfected controls. The team found that 12.6 percent of the HCV patients had diabetes, significantly more than the 4.9 percent of the hepatitis B patients or the 7 percent of the controls. The data suggest that hepatitis C-related liver disease is associated with diabetes at a stage when liver function is still largely preserved. They also note that HCV patients with diabetes were significantly leaner, with a body mass index of 25.7 versus 29.7 for diabetics without hepatitis C. Their LDL cholesterol concentration was also lower. The researchers call for a study to test whether antiviral therapy for HCV infection may prevent the appearance of type 2 diabetes.
Diabetes Care,
October 2005