New cases of infections of the liver with hepatitis C virus are far less common these days in the U. S. since 1980s. The hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections have declined by more than 90% between 1990 and 1992 and have remained stable since then.

In most of the cases of new infection of hepatitis C virus, there are no symptoms. It damages the liver silently for years until it’s finally diagnosed. But about two or three of newly infected patients suffer from acute hepatitis. They show symptoms like fever and nausea, their skin gets yellow from jaundice because the liver doesn’t work properly and they feel very sick.

A review of the rates of acute hepatitis C gives researchers an idea of whether rates of new infections are rising or falling.

According to the researchers at the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the reasons for the fall in cases are not fully known but they give the credit to shift away from needles to other delivery systems by users of illicit drugs.

Most of the illicit IV drug users had become infected by the early 1990s and is the most common source of new hepatitis C virus infection today.

Dr. John Ward, Director of the CDC’s division of viral hepatitis, believes that lower rate of infection is great news and it shows that prevention can work.