Background

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a major cause of chronic liver disease and cancer. Vietnamese Americans are at high risk of HCV infection, with men having the highest US incidence of liver cancer. This study examines an intervention to improve HCV knowledge among Vietnamese Americans.

Study

Seven Vietnamese community-based organizations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey recruited a total of 306 Vietnamese participants from 2010 to 2011.

Results

Average knowledge scores for pretest and posttest were 3.32 and 5.88, respectively (maximum 10). After adjusting for confounding variables, age and higher education were positively associated with higher pretest scores and having a physician who spoke English or Vietnamese was negatively associated with higher pretest scores. Additionally, after adjusting for confounding variables, household income, education, and having an HCV-infected family member significantly increased knowledge scores.

Conclusions

Promotion and development of HCV educational programs can increase HCV knowledge among race and ethnic groups, such as Vietnamese Americans. Giving timely information to at-risk groups provides the opportunity to correct misconceptions, decrease HCV risk behaviors, and encourage testing that might improve timely HCV diagnosis and treatment.

Objectives

The aim of this study was to identify socio-economic and acculturation factors associated with hepatitis C (HCV) screening and infection among US Vietnamese Americans.

Methods

Participants were recruited from 7 Vietnamese community-based organizations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The analysis ultimately included 309 participants who participated in a HCV education intervention program.

Results

Overall, 82.5% (255 of 309) intervention participants completed HCV screening over the 6 months prior to the post-intervention assessment. In multivariate-adjusted analysis, participants who lived in Vietnam for 40 years versus 20 years were more likely to receive HCV screening; unemployed individuals were less likely to receive HCV screening than employed people. Among screened participants, 7.5% had HCV infection.

Conclusions

These findings will guide future culturally and linguistically appropriate interventions to reduce HCV infection and HCV-related liver cancer.