Abstract
BackgroundHepatitis C virus infection is a serious public health problem. Hemodialysis is considered one of the main risk factors of HCV infection, due to several invasive medical procedures and potential nosocomial transmission that patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) are continuously submitted. The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of HCV and its genotypes in patients with CRF in hemodialysis units in southern Brazil.MethodsDemographic data and risk factors for HCV transmission were collected and analyzed. These data were obtained from patients undergoing hemodialysis treatment from January 2009 to August 2010, on two dialysis units of Rio Grande, southern Brazil. Genotyping was carried out by sequencing analysis of HCV NS5b, core-E1 junction and 5′UTR genomic regions.ResultsOne hundred fifty-nine patients under regular hemodialysis treatment were studied. HCV prevalence was 23.3%. HCV-infected patients had been on dialysis treatment for 91.9 months, a more prolonged period compared to HCV-negative patients (p = 0.001). While HCV genotypes 1b and 3a were identified as the most frequent strains, a surprisingly high proportion of genotype 2b was observed among patients in one of the dialysis centers compared to the general HCV-infected population of the same area. Hemodialysis treatment exposure time and healthcare working were associated with HCV infection.ConclusionsBesides the efforts to minimize nosocomial transmission of HCV, some events of transmission are still evidenced in dialysis units.
Highlights
Hepatitis C virus infection is a serious public health problem
The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) and its genotypes in patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) in two hemodialysis centers of Rio Grande, southern Brazil, and the main risk factors associated with infection in this patient group
The statistical model for HCV infection was adjusted for age
Summary
Hepatitis C virus infection is a serious public health problem. Hemodialysis is considered one of the main risk factors of HCV infection, due to several invasive medical procedures and potential nosocomial transmission that patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) are continuously submitted. The major procedures to prevent HCV nosocomial transmission include da Silva et al Virology Journal 2013, 10:167 http://www.virologyj.com/content/10/1/167 protocols for handling bodily fluids, isolation policies and use of erythropoietin to minimize blood transfusions [7,8]. Some factors, such as blood transfusions and duration of hemodialysis treatment, have been related to a higher mortality rate among those patients [9,10,11,12,13]
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