Hepatitis E Virus Seropositivity Research Articles

AGE-WISE EXPOSURE RATES TO HEPATITIS E VIRUS IN A SOUTHERN INDIAN PATIENT POPULATION WITHOUT LIVER DISEASE

To determine the age-stratified exposure to hepatitis E virus (HEV) in patients attending a tertiary care hospital in southern India, serum samples from 600 individuals were tested using a commercial HEV IgG enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Subjects were composed of blood donors, antenatal women, and pre-operative individuals who were negative for hepatitis B surface antigen and antibody to hepatitis C virus with no evidence of liver disease; 200 each were 1-5 and 6-15 years old and 100 each were 16-40 and > or = 41 years old. One (0.5%) sample was positive in those 1-5 years old, two (1.0%) in those 6-15 years old, eight (8%) in those 16-40 years old, and 13 (13%) in those > or = 41 years old. The overall seropositivity rate was 4%. However, there was an age-related increase in exposure to HEV that was statistically significant (P < 0.001), with a higher HEV seropositivity in urban individuals.

Hepatitis E Antibodies in Laboratory Rabbits from 2 US Vendors

We tested laboratory rabbits from 2 US vendors for antibodies against hepatitis E virus (HEV); Seroprevalences were 40% and 50%. Retrospective analysis of an ocular herpes simplex 1 experiment demonstrated that HEV seropositivity had no effect on experiment outcome. HEV probably is widespread in research rabbits, but effects on research remain unknown.

Investigation of the incidence of hepatitis E virus among pregnant women in Turkey.

The aim of our study was to determine the prevalence of hepatitis E virus (HEV) among pregnant and non-pregnant women in Middle Anatolia, identify the factors that affect being HEV positive and to study the effects of HEV positivity on mother and fetus. The study included 245 pregnant women who applied to various health centers and 76 cases in the same age range as the control. Blood samples taken from the cases were tested in terms of anti-HEV, IgM and IgG using the microELISA method. None of the blood samples tested revealed anti-HEV IgM positive, an indicator of acute infection, while 31 pregnant women (12.6%) and nine cases in the control group (11.8%) were found to have anti-HEV IgG positive (P > 0.05). It was seen that in pregnant women such factors as advanced age, lower educational and income levels and rural residence were correlated with higher anti-HEV IgG positive values (P < 0.05). HEV infection is endemic in Afyon and its vicinity. There were no statistical differences between pregnant women and non-pregnant women at similar ages in terms of HEV seropositivity. It can be suggested that pregnancy does not constitute a predisposition to HEV infection.

Hepatitis E virus infection in patients from Saudi Arabia with sickle cell anaemia and beta-thalassemia major: possible transmission by blood transfusion.

The seroprevalence of antibodies against hepatitis E virus (HEV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) was investigated in Saudi children with sickle cell anaemia (SCA) (50 patients: 28 boys, 22 girls; age range 2-14 years) and beta-thalassemia major (28 patients: 12 boys, 16 girls; age range 2-12 years). The SCA patients were from the Gizan area (South) while the thalassemics were from the Riyadh area (Central province). The prevalence of hepatitis E virus antibody (HEVAb) in patients with SCA (18.0%) and in those with beta-thalassemia major (10.7%) was higher than in the control groups (5.5% and 2.8%) but this did not reach the level of statistical significance. In contrast to the situation with HEV, hepatitis C virus antibody (HCVAb) positivity was significantly higher in patients with SCA (16.0%) and in thalassemics (57.1%) than in the respective control groups. Although the difference in HEV seropositivity between beta-thalassemia major, SCA patients and their respective controls is not statistically significant, the possibility of blood-borne HEV in the Saudi population cannot be excluded. Further investigations using HEV-specific polymerase chain reaction techniques are required to confirm whether transmission of HEV through blood preparations or transfusion is possible.