The epidemiology of hepatitis C in turkey

Abstract

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) and hepatitis E virus (HEV) are the principal causes of non-A, non-B hepatitis worldwide, and in Turkey one-third of the cases of acute hepatitis are non-A, non-B. To explore the epidemiology of HCV in Turkey (including the association of HCV with HEV), a seroprevalence study of HCV was conducted. Sera from residents from five distinct regions of the country were tested for antibodies to HCV (anti-HCV) and HEV (anti-HEV). Anti-HCV was detected in 21 (1.5%) of 1,374 persons and was more common in residents over 54 years of age (p = 0.02), with less than primary education (p = 0.013), more than two children (p = 0.003), and who lived in the regions of Ayvalik (p = 0.046) or Trabzon (p = 0.038) compared to Istanbul. Anti-HCV was marginally associated with anti-HEV, which was found in 5.9% of residents. However, this association was lost after controlling for age and education (p = 0.225). HCV infection occurs in all regions of Turkey and is more common in persons who are older and of low socioeconomic status. As resources permit, efforts to reduce the transmission of HCV in Turkey (such as screening blood donations for anti-HCV) are indicated.

Seroprevalence of hepatitis B and C virus infections and risk factors in Turkey: a fieldwork TURHEP study

“…anti-HBs (31.9%) seroprevalence fall within the ranges provided for countries with an intermediate endemic profile (4,20) and in agreement with past studies on epidemiology of hepatitis in Turkey which indicated an overall prevalence of chronic HBV infection of 4-10 % (3.5% in the western and 7% in the eastern regions), and of anti-HBs positivity of 20.6-52.3% [7,10,14,15,19,21,22]. This regional difference in HBV positivity, not observed in HCV infection, re-emphasizes the role of close contact and intrafamilial transmission in areas with crowded families and poor hygienic conditions in HBV seroprevalence.…”

“…There is no national screening or reporting system for HCV in Turkey, and the epidemiological data are derived mainly from local studies [7,[12][13][14] indicating anti-HCV positivity from 0.4 to 1.5% in community-based studies, from 0.19 to 0.68%, in blood donors, 2.2 to 2.4% in patients during routine outpatient visits. The current best estimate for the prevalence was reported to be approximately 1% [1].…”

Transmission of Hepatitis C Virus Infectionto Spouses of Patients Undergoing Chronic Hemodialysis

“…The ratio was considerably higher than that reported in our general population which is 1.5% [5]. While 3 of the 4 HD patients whose partners were found to be anti-HCV positive were HCV-RNA positive, the last one was negative.…”

Overview of Zoonotic Diseases in Turkey: The One Health Concept and Future Threats

“…Human MAVS was found as susceptible to cleavage by these non-human viral proteases, indicating that it does not pose a barrier for zoonotic transmission to humans (326). In Turkey, the seropositivity of HCV was detected as 1.5% in sera collected from 1374 people who live in five distinct regions of the country (327). Once a human is infected, the sparganum (plerocercoid) migrates to various tissues and organs, such as brain and eyes.…”