Document
Prevalence and genotypes of hepatitis C infection among hemodialysis patients in Bushehr, Iran.
Identifier
DOI 10.5001/omj.2023.60
Contributors
Asayesh, Reza., Author
Publisher
Oman Medical Specialty Board.
Gregorian
2023-03
Language
English
English abstract
Objectives: To investigate the prevalence, genotype distribution, and risk factors of
hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among patients undergoing regular hemodialysis in
Bushehr province in southern Iran. Methods: All chronic hemodialysis patients from
the cities of Dashtestan, Genaveh, and Bushehr participated in this study. Enzyme-linked
immunosorbent assay was used to detect anti-HCV antibodies. Molecular detection
of HCV infection was performed by semi-nested reverse transcription polymerase
chain reaction assay, targeting 5' untranslated region and core region of the genome,
and sequencing. Results: Of 279 hemodialysis patients, 15 (5.4%) were positive for
anti-HCV antibodies, and two (0.7%) patients had HCV viremia with genotype 3a.
The hemodialysis patients had a significantly higher seroprevalence of HCV than the
control group (p = 0.007). Patients with Arab ethnicity had significantly higher anti HCV seroprevalence compared to those with Fars ethnicity (p = 0.026). Anti-HCV
seropositivity was not statistically associated with the patients' sex, age group, place of
residence, level of education, duration of hemodialysis, or history of blood transfusion.
Conclusions: Considering the high seroprevalence of HCV in hemodialysis patients,
regular screening of these patients for HCV infection and prompt treatment of those
found infected are recommended.
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Resource URL
Citation
Taherkhani, Reza, & Asayesh, Reza (2023). Prevalence and genotypes of hepatitis C infection among hemodialysis patients in Bushehr, Iran. Oman Medical Journal, 38 (2), e481 [1-7].
Category
Journal articles