Prevalence of hepatitis B, C and HIV infection in thalassemic and hemophilic patients of Markazi province in 2004

Background and objectives Major thalassemic and hemophilic patients in regular need of blood and blood products are prone to risk of aquiring infections such as hepatitis and AIDS. High prevalence of such viral factors has been reported all over the world. In this study, the prevalence rates of hepatitis B, C, HIV and relevant factors were evaluated among hemophilic and thalassemic patients in Markazi province in the year 2004. Materials and Methods In this descriptive study, 68 hemophilic and 97 thalassemic patients were selected. The necessary information through questionnaires was gathered and the subjects were tested for markers of HIVAb, HBsAg, HBsAb, HBcAb, and HCVAb through the ELISA method. HCV positive cases were confirmed by RIBA method. The results were evaluated regarding risk factors and demographic characteristics. Results were analysed through chi-square, fisher exact, t-test and logestic regression in SPSS software. Results In all of the patients, HBsAg and HIVAb were negative. The prevalence rate of positive HCVAb was 7.2% in the thalassemic and 36.7% in the hemophilic patients. None of the thalassemic and hemophilic patients who had received blood and blood products after implementation of the screening program showed hepatitis C. In thalassemic patients, positive HCVAb showed significant correlation with the age, blood transfusion duration, and the number of administered blood units. In hemophilic patients, positive markers of HBsAb and HBcAb had significant correlation with consumption duration of coagulation factors and age average of patients. Conclusions In this study, prevalence rates of hepatitis B and HIV were zero. In these patients, the prevalence rate of hepatitis C was higher especially in hemophilic patients and all of the positive cases were attributed to the period before 1996. The use of advanced methods, more sensitive tests, and virally inactivated factor concentrates are the ways of viral infection reduction in these patients.