Seroprevalence of hepatitis C virus infection among individuals attending a private clinic in Luanda, Angola

Abstract Background Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection remains a major public health concern in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where epidemiological data are limited, particularly in countries such as Angola. Herein, we estimated the seroprevalence of HCV infection and demographic characteristics related to the infection in a large urban population in Luanda, the capital city of Angola. Methods This was a retrospective cross-sectional analysis of existing laboratory records from 5,399 individuals using an immunoassay test for detecting anti-HCV antibodies, between 2020 and 2024 at the MEDIAG Laboratory, a private healthcare facility in Luanda, Angola. Results Overall, 1.1% (57/5399) of participants were anti-HCV reactive. The mean age of reactive individuals was significantly higher than that of non-reactive participants (47.5 ± 15.7 vs. 37.3 ± 12.5 years, p  < 0.001). Young individuals aged 20–30 years (AOR: 0.30, p  = 0.003) or 31–40 years (AOR: 0.31, p  < 0.001) showed lower odds of anti-HCV reactivity. Males showed numerically higher anti-HCV reactivity (AOR: 1.26, p  = 0.407), but this association did not reach statistical significance. Between 2020 and 2024, overall anti-HCV reactivity among tested individuals changed slightly, from 0.9% to 1.1%, without statistical evidence of a temporal increase ( p  = 0.984). Among the 57 anti-HCV-reactive individuals, changes in the distribution of cases across age groups were observed over time, with the proportion in those under 20 years ranging from 0% to 5.9%, in those aged 20–30 years from 12.5% to 23.5%, and in those over 40 years from 50% to 64.7%, while a decrease was observed in the 31–40 years group (37.5% to 5.9%). Similarly, variations were observed by gender, with females decreasing from 75% to 47.1% and males increasing from 25% to 52.9%. Conclusion Anti-HCV reactivity was more frequent among individuals aged over 40 years. The observed age and gender distributions may help identify groups for further surveillance and targeted screening strategies. However, these findings are based on individuals tested at a private healthcare facility and on anti-HCV antibody reactivity without HCV RNA confirmation, limiting inference regarding active infection and population prevalence. Further population-based studies with HCV RNA confirmation are needed to better estimate the true burden of HCV infection in Angola. Clinical trial number Not applicable.