2010•Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and HygieneRequires access
Seroprevalence of antibodies to hepatitis E virus in two large communities in Havana, Cuba
María Caridad Montalvo Villalba, Ming Guan, Antonio Pérez, Marité Bello Corredor, Susel Sariego Frómeta, Aidonis Gutiérrez Moreno, Wei Ping Hu, Teresa Howard, Licel A. Rodríguez Lay, David Anderson
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Abstract
Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is an important cause of acute viral hepatitis in tropical and sub-tropical regions that occurs both as epidemic episodes and sporadic cases. The aim of this investigation was to estimate the prevalence of total immunoglobulin (Ig) anti-hepatitis E virus (anti-HEV) and the risk factors associated to two communities in Havana City. Serum samples (n=469) obtained from healthy individuals with no history of viral hepatitis were screened for total anti-HEV by enzyme immunoassay (EIA). An overall prevalence of 10% (47/469) (95% CI; 7.52-13.19%) was obtained. Higher anti-HEV prevalence was found in the municipality of Marianao (12.1%) compared to Playa (7.1%). Analysis of risk factors revealed a significant association of total anti-HEV prevalence in age group 41-60 years old, with a risk ratio of 3.21 (95% CI: 1.09-9.7) (P=0.01). No relation was found between anti-HEV and other variables such as gender, risk occupations, surgery and transfusions. The detection of total anti-HEV in individuals with no overt acute hepatitis suggests the existence of sub-clinical or anicteric HEV infection in these municipalities.