Publication:

A study in the seroprevalence of hepatitis B core antibody and other transfusion transmitted infections in blood donors

Background Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection can lead to acute or chronic hepatitis. There is a phase during which the HBsAg cannot be detected in the blood, although hepatitis B infection is present. During this window period, detection of the antibody to the hepatitis B core antigen (anti-HBc) serves as a useful serological marker for hepatitis B infection. This study was undertaken to detect the Hepatitis B core antibody and other transfusion transmitted infections (HBsAg, HIV, HCV, Malaria and Syphilis) among healthy blood donors in the Kancheepuram district, TamilNadu and its impact in our blood transfusion services.

Methods A total of 6954 blood donors were selected. 5 ml of blood from each donor was collected from the collection bag into a sterile capped tube. It was then centrifuged and the plasma was sepa-rated and stored as two aliquots at -70°C till further use. The screening for the Hepatitis B core antibody (anti-HBc) was done by a competitive immunoassay technique with ortho clinical diagnostics Anti-HBc (IgM and IgG) reagent kit and were run in a fully automated Vitros Immunodiagnostics system.

Results Of the total 6954 donor blood samples which were tested, 713 samples (10.2%) were found to be positive for anti-HBc (IgM and IgG) and 93 samples (1.3%) were found to be positive for HBsAg.

Conclusions Our study helped in determining the prevalence of hepatitis B core antibody and its subsequent detrimental effect on the blood donor population due to its high prevalence rate.