Epidemiology of Hepatitis C Virus Infection in ESRD Patients in Khuzestan Province, Iran

Liver disease caused by hepatitis C virus (HCV) in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) causes significant morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of HCV infection and its relationship in ESRD patients living in the province of Khuzestan, Iran. In a cross sectional study from December 2010 to March 2011, entire of ESRD patients treated with hemodialysis (HD) or peritoneal dialysis (PD) in the Khuzestan province enrolled for the study. A standardized questionnaire was used to collect Social and demographic data including cause of ESRD and date of onset of PD or HD. Blood samples were tested for hepatitis C antibody (anti-HCV) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). The Research Center of Ahvaz Joundishapur University of Medical Sciences approved the study. In overall, 1117 ESRD patients were enrolled for the study. The prevalence of anti-HCV was 3.4 % (38 patients, 20 males with Mean age of 45.29 years and 18 females with Mean age of 45.6 years). The most common Cause of ESRD in anti-HCV positive patients was high blood pressure in 45.4%, followed by, DM in 28.7%, and unknown in 13.9%. We din not find any association between both sexes (P = 0.06) and also between mean age of anti-HCV positive and negative patients (P = 0.59). There was a significant association between high blood pressure as cause of ESRD with anti-HCV positivity (0.033). Although, the prevalence of HCV infection among ESRD patients has decreased in recent years, however it remains as a significant cause of viral hepatitis among these patients in Khuzestan province.