Seropositivity to viral hepatitis in blood donors in north Darfur state-Sudan

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this research is to investigate the sero-prevalence of hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV) infection among apparently healthy volunteer blood donors, as well as the relationship between serological evidence of viral hepatitis and age and demographic characteristics. Methods: A retrospective study of sequential blood donation findings from January to December 2017 was performed in North Darfur, Western Sudan. The descriptive quantities were calculated using Chi-square test. Results: A total of 4527 respondents showed an interest in donating blood. All of them were between the ages of 17 and 49 years. A total of 247 (5.5%) and 19 (0.4%) donors tested positive for HBV and HCV, respectively, while 4280 (94.5%) and 4508 (99.6%) donors tested negative for HBV and HCV, respectively. On both HBV and HCV, there was a strong association between serological evidence of viral hepatitis and age (P =0.000). In comparison to the other age categories, the prevalence of HBV and HCV was higher in age group (35-39) and (40 or more) years, (76/247) 30.8 % and (171/247) 69.2 % for HBV and (7/19) 36.8% and (12/19) 62.2 % for HCV. Conclusions: Blood donors in North Darfur have been shown to have a high prevalence of HBV infection and a low frequency of HCV. There was a statistically significant relationship between viral hepatitis and age, but a negative statistically significant relationship between occupancy and age.