Hepatitis C virus genotype and subtype distribution in patient specimens tested at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, between January 2011 and November 2014

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype/subtype data are routinely generated in clinical laboratories to guide treatment. Genotype data can also inform genotype distribution and molecular epidemiology of HCV infections in patient populations and geographical regions that clinics/laboratories serve. The aim of this study was to determine the distribution of HCV genotypes/subtypes and their association with demographic characteristics among the patients that were routinely tested in the Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory at The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston. Among the 6573 patients tested between January 2011 and November 2014, the most frequent HCV genotype/subtype was 1a (65.3%), followed by 3a (11.5%), 1b (10.4%), and 2b (8.8%). Combined, genotype 4 and genotype 6 were found in less than 1% of this cohort. Approximately 1.3% of the patients presented multiple genotypes/subtypes. Factors independently associated with genotypes and subtypes were race/ethnicity, sex, and patient age.