SEROPREVALENCE OF HEPATITIS B AND C AMONG BLOOD DONORS IN HYDERABAD, PAKISTAN

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections are the main transfusion-transmitted infections (TTIs) especially in developing countries like Pakistan. Hence it is mandatory to screen all blood donors for both important infections. The objective of the present study was to determine the prevalence of HCV and HBV seropositivity among blood donors at Hyderabad, Pakistan. Material & Methods: Blood donations of 6 months period were studied to determine the prevalence of HBV and HCV seropositivity. During the study period, a total of 2696 blood donors were screened for the presence of Anti-HCV and Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) using chromatographic immunoassay kit as recommended by the manufacturer. HBV and HCV positivity were the two research variable. As nominal data, these were analyzed as number and percentage. Results: A total of 2696 blood donation were collected during six month period from January 2012 to June 2012. The data revealed that 93 (3.45%) donors were positive for HCV and 49 (1.82) blood donors were positive for HBV. In addition, the prevalence of co-infection of HBV and HCV appeared very low in this study and only two (0.074%) donors were positive for both HCV and HBV. Conclusion: Due to the high prevalence of the two main transfusion-transmitted infections of Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections in our setup, it is mandatory to screen all blood donors for both these important infections and to adopt strict measures in selection of blood donors.