Routine Testing
Women contemplating pregnancy or seeking antenatal care should be made aware of the benefits of routine screening for HCV infection. Hepatitis C antibody (anti-HCV) testing should be offered and individuals who are HCV antibody positive need to be tested for HCV RNA because the small risk of perinatal transmission is conditional on the presence of maternal HCV RNA. Awareness of a woman’s HCV status provides the opportunity for counselling, as treatment may be an option for those considering future pregnancies.56