An estimated fifteen to twenty five thousand people in New Hampshire have Hepatitis C. The virus is the most common blood borne infection in the United States and the leading cause of liver transplants. Among people with mental illness the prevalence of the virus is ten times that of the general population. Yet many of these patients have traditionally been denied the best treatment option available, a drug called Interferon.
The side effects of Interferon are thought to bring on certain mood disorders, which has caused doctors to shy away from prescribing the treatment to people with a history of mental illness. But a new article published this month in the journal Psychosomatics casts doubt on that approach.
New Hampshire Public Radio's Kerry Grens has more.
