A study by the University of Victoria suggests that the hepatitis C virus could possibly be passed on between crack smokers who share pipes.
The university's Centre for Addictions Research says the study underscores the need to include crack smokers in hep C prevention efforts.
The university says in a news release that hep C is the most prevalent viral disease among street drug users and its consequences cost Canadians an estimated $500-million to $1-billion a year.
It says biological evidence pointing towards the possibility of hep C transmission by shared crack paraphernalia has been lacking until now.
The study was conducted with 51 inner-city crack users in Toronto in 2006, collecting crack pipes after they were used and testing their owners for hep C antibodies.
The study found the virus on one of 22 pipes tested whose owners had tested antibody positive, which meant they'd been exposed to hep C.
