Risk of Hepatitis C from tattoo art not sharply defined, experts say
By Sheila Hagar of the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
While there is a dearth of strong evidence of a link between getting a tattoo and becoming infected with hepatitis C, the potential is there, said Wendy Dillon, coordinator for the state’s adult viral hepatitis prevention program.
“Here’s what I say,” she said at a recent meeting about safe tattooing. “If there is blood-to-blood contact, there is potential.”
While hepatitis A and B are vaccine preventable, no such treatment yet exists for hepatitis C. And no vaccine is likely to show up soon, Dillon said. “The virus mutates so quickly.”
Hepatitis C is a virus that causes inflammation of the liver and the most common blood-borne infection in the United States.
Hepatitis C infection can lead to cirrhosis of the liver and liver cancer. After alcohol, it’s the most common cause of chronic liver disease, and the most frequent reason for a liver transplant.
About 115,000 people are infected with the disease in Washington. It’s spread by exposure to infected blood, but not through food or water, sharing eating utensils or casual contact.
Symptoms of hepatitis C include loss of appetite, stomach pain, nausea and vomiting, which may occur 40-180 days after contact. Most people, however, never experience symptoms so are unaware they are infected.
Anyone considering a tattoo or body piercing should consider the health risks. Infection can occur if tools used have someone else’s blood on them and if the artist or the person doing the piercing doesn’t follow appropriate infection control practices.
According to Dillon, the Centers for Disease Control’s position on tattooing is that although some studies have found an association between tattooing and hepatitis C infection in very selected populations, it is not known if this can be generalized to the whole population. No data exist in the United States indicating that persons with exposures to tattooing alone are at increased risk for the virus.
In the last 20 years, less than one percent of persons with newly acquired hepatitis C reported to the CDC had been tattooed.
Educated consumers are their own best advocates, Dillon said. “Knowing what questions to ask and being sure to ask them.”
For more on hepatitis C, contact the state hepatitis hotline at 1-866-917-4HEP. On the Web, visit www.doh.wa.gov/cfh/hepatitis, or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at www.cdc.gov/hepatitis.
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Kitty Candelaria - Executive Director - National Hepatitis C Institute wrote on Mar 26, 2008 9:50 AM:
" Wendy Dillon is the Hepatitis C Coordinator for Washington State. Her job is to merge HCV into existing programs like HIV/AIDS, Substance Abuse, and STD. She does not get paid to advocate or address the needs of the general population infected with HCV. She relays what she has been told by the CDC. Thats who funds her job!!!
Tattoo and body piercing has been associated with cases of HCV. The evidence is overwhelming!!! There has been Civil cases related to HCV infection through tattooing where the infected patron has WON. This evidence has gone before our State Department of Health as well as a 6 year battle in the legislature on regulations for this industry.
Ms Dillon would tell you IV drug use is currently the number one source of infection. If you only test those in substance abuse programs and prisons then you might be able to draw that conclusion. DOH has biased their data by collecting numbers from these sources rather then the general population because they claim this is a more efficent way to spend taxpayer dollars. If your dying from HCV maybe you would dispute this claim and the stigma they have promoted through this biased data.
There is a large body of medical evidence that supports the number one mode of transmission as body modification practices that are going unregulated as well as medical facilities failure to practice sterilization and universal barrier procedures.
We have seen how this virus can be spread so easily in regulated facilities as hundreds of potential outbreaks have been reported. How many of these folks will go on undiagnosed until the infection has taken its toll?
Endoscopy Center in Southern Nevada, 40,000 potentially infected with HCV - 2/29/08 (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23379333/)
HCV is a DECLARED EPIDEMIC. 2 U.S. Surgeon Generals declared that HCV deserved the same public response as HIV/AIDS. HCV is 10 times bigger and spreading 10 times faster then HIV/AIDS. The infected population is very diverse. The modes of transmission are as diverse!!!
Yet people like Ms Dillon are employed by our STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT to do nothing more then merge HCV services into existing programs and spread a bias message on modes of transmission. All this to secure the agencies funding stream. Sadly, these programs fund the majority of our Public Health System.
I thought public health was for the public. We established programs for SARS, Westnile and Avian Flu which has taken, not one Washingtonian life. HCV has claimed conservatively, 4,000 lives between 2000 and 2007. This number is expected to grow as the population grows older. Over the last 25 years approximately 16,000 Washingtonians have died from HIV/AIDS.
There are an estimated 10,000 Washingtonians living with HIV/AIDS and there is an estimated 120,000 living with HCV. Over 40,000 cases of HCV have been reported in Washington between 2000-2006 (DOH has been unable to supply us with current numbers of this communicable reportable disease).
What happened to educating the public on declared epidemics in a non-biased, comprehensive manner? With health costs reaching beyond the middle classes ability to pay, EDUCATION is the cheapest form of PREVENTION. So where is that education.
Majority of those currently dying from HCV were infected through blood transfusion or infected blood products.
I have yet to see Ms Dillon testify as to the potential risk of tattoo/body piercing for HCV and the need to regulate. We also support DOC's establishment of a sterile and regulated program for tattooing inside the prison system. Prisoners deserve access to a safe and clean tattooing practice.
"
Bernadette wrote on Mar 25, 2008 7:18 PM:
" Your article says....
"No data exist in the United States indicating that persons with exposures to tattooing alone are at increased risk for the virus."
That is NOT true. Last year there was a study done on the association between tatoos and Hepatitis C. The study excluded other risk factors like injection drug use and transfusion.
The principal investigator, Dr Edward Bini, said, "Other studies did not exclude patients with other risk factors for hepatitis C which made it difficult to assess the association between HCV and tattoos. The strength of that association surprised us."
"The final analysis of the data of 1887 patients with tattoos and no other risk factors for Hepatitis C showed that patients with Hepatitis C were approximately three times more likely to have had tattoos. This connection was significant."
And the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases recommended that ALL patients with tattoos should be tested for Hepatitis C.
" Hep C is running so wild in the prison system because of tattoos that it is scary. I myself have 3 tattoos and all were from different shops in Washington state, all shops were very clean, all needles came out of sterile packages and I watched them open them in front of me. I work for DOC and the spread of Hep C in the system would scare the average person! Please follow the tips set forth in these articles and you will be fine. "
Kitty Candelaria - Executive Director - National Hepatitis C Institute wrote on Mar 26, 2008 9:50 AM:
Tattoo and body piercing has been associated with cases of HCV. The evidence is overwhelming!!! There has been Civil cases related to HCV infection through tattooing where the infected patron has WON. This evidence has gone before our State Department of Health as well as a 6 year battle in the legislature on regulations for this industry.
Ms Dillon would tell you IV drug use is currently the number one source of infection. If you only test those in substance abuse programs and prisons then you might be able to draw that conclusion. DOH has biased their data by collecting numbers from these sources rather then the general population because they claim this is a more efficent way to spend taxpayer dollars. If your dying from HCV maybe you would dispute this claim and the stigma they have promoted through this biased data.
There is a large body of medical evidence that supports the number one mode of transmission as body modification practices that are going unregulated as well as medical facilities failure to practice sterilization and universal barrier procedures.
We have seen how this virus can be spread so easily in regulated facilities as hundreds of potential outbreaks have been reported. How many of these folks will go on undiagnosed until the infection has taken its toll?
Endoscopy Center in Southern Nevada, 40,000 potentially infected with HCV - 2/29/08 (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23379333/)
HCV is a DECLARED EPIDEMIC. 2 U.S. Surgeon Generals declared that HCV deserved the same public response as HIV/AIDS. HCV is 10 times bigger and spreading 10 times faster then HIV/AIDS. The infected population is very diverse. The modes of transmission are as diverse!!!
Yet people like Ms Dillon are employed by our STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT to do nothing more then merge HCV services into existing programs and spread a bias message on modes of transmission. All this to secure the agencies funding stream. Sadly, these programs fund the majority of our Public Health System.
I thought public health was for the public. We established programs for SARS, Westnile and Avian Flu which has taken, not one Washingtonian life. HCV has claimed conservatively, 4,000 lives between 2000 and 2007. This number is expected to grow as the population grows older. Over the last 25 years approximately 16,000 Washingtonians have died from HIV/AIDS.
There are an estimated 10,000 Washingtonians living with HIV/AIDS and there is an estimated 120,000 living with HCV. Over 40,000 cases of HCV have been reported in Washington between 2000-2006 (DOH has been unable to supply us with current numbers of this communicable reportable disease).
What happened to educating the public on declared epidemics in a non-biased, comprehensive manner? With health costs reaching beyond the middle classes ability to pay, EDUCATION is the cheapest form of PREVENTION. So where is that education.
Majority of those currently dying from HCV were infected through blood transfusion or infected blood products.
I have yet to see Ms Dillon testify as to the potential risk of tattoo/body piercing for HCV and the need to regulate. We also support DOC's establishment of a sterile and regulated program for tattooing inside the prison system. Prisoners deserve access to a safe and clean tattooing practice.
"