Ann Lab Med.  2019 Jan;39(1):81-85. 10.3343/alm.2019.39.1.81.

Prevalence of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) Among Blood Donors in Eastern Saudi Arabia: Results From a Five-Year Retrospective Study of HBV Seromarkers

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Clinical Laboratory Science, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. fmzahrani@iau.edu.sa
  • 2Department of Public Health, College of Public Health, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Transfusion-transmissible hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a major problem worldwide. Recently, confirmatory nucleic acid tests (NATs) for HBV DNA have been employed in several countries. We assessed the prevalence and yearly trends of HBV infection in blood donors in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, screening for HBV surface antigen (HBsAg), antibody against HBV core antigen (anti-HBc), and HBV DNA.
METHODS
Between 2011 and 2015, a total of 22,842 donors were screenedfor HBsAg, anti-HBc, and HBV DNA using the HBsAg Qualitative II kit (Abbott, Ireland Diagnostics Division, Sligo, Ireland), ARCHITECT Anti-hepatitis B core antigen antibody (HBc) II Assay kit (Abbott GmbH & Co. KG, Wiesbaden, Germany), and NAT Procleix Ultrio Elite Assay kit (Grifols Diagnostic Solutions Inc., Los Angeles, CA, USA), respectively.
RESULTS
A total of 739 (3.24%) donors were HbsAg(+), anti-HBc(+), or HBV DNA(+); 63 (0.28%) were HbsAg(+), anti-HBc(+), and HBV DNA(+). Twelve (0.05%) were anti-HBc(+) and HBV DNA(+) but HBsAg(−); they were considered to have occult infection. Further, 664 (2.91%) were HBsAg(−) but anti-HBc(+), indicating chronic or resolving infection. HBV prevalence increased significantly from 2011 to 2012, increased marginally till 2013, and showed a decreasing trend from 2013 (P>0.05).
CONCLUSIONS
The five-year prevalence of HBV infection among blood donors in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia (3.24%) is lower than that reported for other regions in the country. The occult HBV infection rate of 0.05% emphasizes the importance of NATs in isolating potential infectious blood units.

Keyword

Hepatitis B virus; Hepatitis B virus surface antigen; Antibody against hepatitis B virus core antigen; Nucleic acid test; Prevalence; Blood donors; Saudi Arabia

MeSH Terms

Antigens, Surface
Blood Donors*
DNA
Hepatitis B Surface Antigens
Hepatitis B virus*
Hepatitis B*
Hepatitis*
Humans
Ireland
Mass Screening
Prevalence*
Retrospective Studies*
Saudi Arabia*
Tissue Donors
Antigens, Surface
DNA
Hepatitis B Surface Antigens

Figure

  • Fig. 1 Yearly prevalence of HBV among blood donors from the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Prevalence increased from 2011 through 2012 drastically (P<0.0001; χ2 test), increased marginally thereafter, and showed a decreasing trend from 2013 (P>0.05). Similar trends were noted for anti-HBc levels among donors.*P<0.0001.Abbreviations: HBV, hepatitis B virus; HBsAg, hepatitis B virus surface antigen; anti-HBc, antibody against hepatitis B virus core antigen; NAT, nucleic acid test.


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