2. Introduction
Hepatitis is term to describe a nonspecific liver
inflammation Until now are known 8 types of
hepatitis: A, B, C, D, E, F, G,H.
Hepatitis B and C are similar types of liver
infection, which are mostly spread through
blood and blood products.
3. Introduction (Cont’d)
Hepatitis B virus infection (HBV) is
responsible for an estimated 1-2 million deaths
worldwide every year and around 300 millions
are carriers for HBV out of which around 80%
reside in Asia
In Pakistan the rate of HBV and HCV
infection ranges from 8- 15% in general
population with variations in the frequency and
characteristics in various parts of the country
4. One of the most common route of transmission of
hepatitis B and C is blood transfusion but it cannot be
considered the only source of spread of hepatitis
viruses as at maximum only 1% of general population
receives blood transfusion in a year
Some of the patients are dependent on blood
transfusions such as patients suffering from
haematological disorders requiring replacement
therapy, patients undergoing major surgical
procedures & getting haemodialysis & patients
receiving organ transplants.
5. Aim of study
To analyze the prevalence of HBsAg and anti-
HCV antibodies in volunteer and exchange
blood donors
6. Material And Methods
A total of 18241donors were screened for
hepatitis B and hepatitis C, using Architect,
CMIA method (Abbott, USA)
The study was conducted at Fatimid
Foundation Blood Bank & Haematological
Services and analyzed period was from July
2009 – April 2010
7. Selection of donors
Healthy individuals aged between 18-55 years
of age without any previous history of
jaundice, tuberculosis, heart, lung or kidney
disease, prolonged fever, convulsions etc., and
no history of major surgery, dental procedures,
transfusion in the past 6 months, or blood
donation during last three months and not
receiving any drugs or current medication
8. Specimen collection and preparation
Fresh blood specimens were collected in EDTA tubes from the
donors for processing
Specimens were handled gently to avoid haemolysis of blood
Plasma was separated by centrifugation for 20 minutes initially at
3500 rpm (Labofuge, Heraeus, Germany)
For confirmation of Borderline/Gray zone results, two tubes are
made from the Plasma collected from the suspected bag &
centrifuged again at 10,000 rpm (Heraeus Germany) for 20 minutes
to remove most of the medium weight interfering substances
9. Screening tests performed
during July 2009 to June
2010
HBsAg Reactive HCV Reactive
Exchan
ge
donor
(A)
Volunt
ary
donor
(B)
Total
Test
Perform
ed C=
A+B
In
Exchan
ge
donor
a1
In
Voluntary
donor b1
Total
C1=
a1+b1
In
Exchan
ge
donor
a1
In
Volunta
ry
donor
b1
Total
c1=
a1+b1
4532 13709 18241 99 455 554 143 518 661
10. Results
(July 2009 to April 2010)
Total screening tests performed in both
exchange & voluntary donors during
HBsAg positive in Voluntary donors
HbsAg positive in Exchange donors
HCV positive in Voluntary donors
HCV positive in Exchange donors
18241
455 (3.31%)
99 (2.18%)
518 (3.77%)
143 (3.15%)
11. % of HBsAg Reactive % of HCV Reactive
In
Exchange
donor
In
Voluntary
donor
Both
exchange &
voluntary
donors
In
Exchange
donor
In
Voluntary
donor
Both
exchange
&
voluntary
donors
2.18% 3.31% 3.03% 3.15% 3.77% 3.62%
12. Conclusion
Blood is one of the main sources of transmission of
Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C. Donor selection is of
paramount importance. Majority of blood donors in
our country are exchange (replacement) donors or
voluntary donors. They are usually healthy peoples
without any apparent illness. Our study shows that
the seroprevalence of Hepatitis B and C among
exchange and volunteer blood donors is slightly
higher than exchange donors, because in voluntary
donors both one time & regular donors are included.
Further studies are required to separate regular and
one time voluntary donors.