Seroprevalence and Trend of Hepatitis B and C Viral Infections in Patients at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Southern IndiaA Retrospective Study

Abstract

Introduction: Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) are serious public health problems worldwide with estimated 350 million chronically infected people. Transmission of infection occurs through blood transfusion, needles, body fluids and sexual intercourse. To know the magnitude of transmission of any disease in a community and for its control and prevention; trend and study of its prevalence is most important. Aim: To analyse the overall trend of HBV and HCV infection and to estimate the seroprevalence in a tertiary care hospital of Southern India. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study conducted at the Department of Microbiology, Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences (SVIMS), Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India. The data of 77,158 and 58,024 samples for the test of Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and test for anti-hepatitis C antibody respectively, for a period of three years four months (from September 2013 to December 2016) was retrieved from Departmental registers and Hospital Information System. Statistical software IBM SPSS, Version 20.0 (IBM SPSS Statistic, Somers NY, USA) was used for statistical analysis. Results: A total of 77,158 samples were tested for HBsAg whereas, 58,024 were tested for the presence of anti-HCV antibody. Seroprevalence of HBV was 2.27% and for HCV, it was 0.73%. Conclusion: HBV infection is showing a decreasing trend and the HCV infection, a fluctuating trend. Attempt should be made to reduce the incidence of HBV and HCV by simple preventive measures like public education, screening of blood and blood products, increasing public awareness about importance of vaccination.

Keywords

• andhra pradesh
• vaccination
• viral hepatitis