An estimated four to five million people in the United States have

been infected with hepatitis C. Some of these people cleared the

hepatitis C virus and are no longer infected, so the number of
people who are chronically infected is smaller, though precise
figures for chronic HCV infection are difficult to obtain.
More than one million people in the United States have HIV/AIDS,
and 25% to 30% of them are coinfected with HCV.
Worldwide, about four to five million people are coinfected with HIV
and hepatitis C. Coinfection rates range from about 9% of HIVpositive
people in the United Kingdom to almost 50% in Spain and
Italy. Coinfection rates as high as 60% to 70% have been found in
groups of injection drug users (IDUs) in various countries, including
the United States, which has very high coinfection rates in some
urban areas.


Sexual transmission of HCV
The risk for sexually transmitted HCV is very low in monogamous,
HIV-negative, heterosexual couples in which one partner has HCV.
One study following almost 900 heterosexual monogamous couples
did not report any HCV infections over ten years of follow-up. These
couples did not use condoms, but also did not have anal sex or sex
during menstruation. Presumably, the uninfected partner in these
couples may have had less exposure to blood, and therefore less
chance of catching HCV during sex.
The risk for sexually transmitted HCV is higher for HIV-positive gay
men and is probably also higher for men or women who have
numerous partners and/or lots of anal or vaginal sex without
condoms.
HCV is usually contracted when infected blood from one person
enters another persons body. Although the hepatitis C virus has
been found in semen and vaginal fluid, it is unclear whether and to
what extent these fluids are infectious.
Sex is riskier if it involves exposure to blood. This could include
longer and more energetic sex, anal sex, fisting, sex with a woman
during menstruation, and group sex. Condoms can reduce these
risks. Latex gloves can reduce exposure to blood during fisting.