Co-infected with HIV and hepatitis C? A new CATIE resource provides information for people living with these two viruses.

Co-infection with HIV

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About 13,000 Canadians who have Hep C also have HIV. HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus. It is a virus that attacks a person’s immune system and causes AIDS. AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. For more information on HIV, visit www.catie.ca.

You may be co-infected and not know it because both viruses can silently cause harm before symptoms develop. The only way to know is by getting an HIV test and the right Hep C tests.

HIV and the Hep C virus have similarities and differences. The table below shows what these are:

Comparing Hep C & HIV
	Hep C	HIV
Transmission	Through contact with infected blood.	Through contact with infected blood, semen, vaginal or rectal fluids or breast milk.
How most people get it in Canada	Using drug-use equipment already used by someone else, particularly equipment for injection drug use.	Unprotected sex. Using drug-use equipment already used by someone else, particularly equipment for injection drug use.
Testing	Antibody test looks for exposure. RNA test looks for infection.	Positive antibody test shows infection.
Treatment goal	Treatment is available and may clear the virus from the body.	Treatment is available to keep the virus under control. You can be infected with a type of HIV that does not respond to treatment. This is called a drug-resistant strain of HIV.
How long it takes to treat	Hep C treatment takes six months to a year depending on the strain of Hep C that you have.	Once it is started, HIV treatment is life-long.
How long it survives outside the body	Hep C can survive for at least four days and sometimes weeks outside the body.	HIV dies within minutes in open air outside the body.
Risk of re-infection	There is no immunity to Hep C. You can be re-infected even if you already cleared the virus.	You have HIV for life but can sometimes be infected with more than one strain.
Vaccine	There is currently no vaccine available for Hep C.	There is currently no vaccine available for HIV.