About 10,000 Canadians who have Hep C also have HIV. This is called co-infection (which means having two or more infections at the same time). 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 a Hep C test.
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 fluids or breast milk. |
| How most people get it in Canada |
Reusing drug-use equipment already used by someone else, particularly equipment for injection drug use. |
Unprotected sex.
Reusing drug-use equipment already used by someone else. |
| 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. |
| How long it takes to treat |
Hep C treatment takes six months to a year depending on the Hep C strain you have. |
Once it is started, HIV treatment is life-long. |
| How long it survives outside the body |
Hep C can survive for four days (and possibly up to two 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 a strain that does not respond to treatment. |
| Vaccine |
There is currently no vaccine available for Hep C. |
There is currently no vaccine available for HIV. |
In Canada, there are more people with Hep C than there are with HIV and this is also true in the rest of the world. In Ontario 110,000 people have Hep C and 26,000 have HIV. Hep C is easier to catch than HIV and one of the reasons is that the Hep C virus can survive longer outside the body than HIV does.
Having HIV and Hep C is a serious situation because it means the chances of developing liver disease are higher. It also makes decisions about treatment for both infections more complicated.
As shown in the table above, if you have either HIV or Hep C, you are at risk for the other, as both can enter the body the same way. HIV and Hep C are both blood-borne diseases, which means that they can be transmitted by blood-to-blood contact. You are also at risk for other infections, like hepatitis B, or for getting infected with a different strain of Hep C. You need to take care not to share materials contaminated with blood. (See Staying Safe for more information.)
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