OBJECTIVES: To describe mortality trends related to hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in Colombia 1997–2000

METHODS: Descriptive study using vital registration. 24 ICD-10 codes related to HCV were used. The distribution of causes by age, sex and year was estimated. Proportional mortality, rates (x100,000) and years of life lost were estimated during the period. Data was obtained from the national agency for population statistics – known as DANE for its initials in Spanish

RESULTS: In 1997-2020 there were 79,193 (1.6% of the total) related to HCV. 53.8% in men and 80.7% in those over 54 years of age (78.2% men and 83.4% women). The mean age of death was 65.7 years (SD: 8.3) [67.1 (SD: 8.4) in women and 64.6 (SD: 8.3) in men]. 67.2% of deaths from HCV-related causes were born before 1947, 26.3% between 1947 and 1966, and 6.5% after 1966. In other causes, these proportions were 58.6%, 18.9%, and 22 ,5%. The mean age of death from other causes in women was 64.1 years (SD: 23.3) and in men 56.2 years (SD: 24.9). The 79,193 deaths produced 1,543,154 YLL, 52.9% in women. The YLL rates (x100,000) between 1997 and 2000 were 698.3 (men) and 576.0 (women) and rose to 735.7 (men) and 662.8 (women) between 2016 and 2020. Mortality from cirrhosis and liver carcinoma was 1.25 and 1.10 times higher in men in the last decade, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: Mortality rates were relatively stable during the period and like those estimated by The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME)