In a large cohort of HCV-infected veterans, treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was associated with a significant reduction in risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) events. Researchers searched the Electronically Retrieved Cohort of HCV-infected Veterans database for patients with chronic HCV infection (n=242,680), identifying patients who had been treated with a pegylated interferon and rivavirin regimen (n=4,436) or a direct-acting antiviral therapy (DAA)-containing regimen (n=12,667). Treated patients were matched for age, race, sex, and baseline values with patients who had never received treatment for HCV infections (controls). They found:

• There were 1,239 (7.2%) incident CVD events in the treated and 2,361 (13.8%) in the control group.
• The incidence rate was 30.9/1,000 patient-years in the control group and 20.3/1,000 patient-years in the treated group.
• Compared with no treatment, treatment with pegylated interferon and ribavirin or a DAA regimen was associated with a significantly lower risk of a CVD event.
• Patients treated with a DAA regimen and those who achieved sustained virologic responses (SVRs) had the lowest risk for CVD events.