Abstract

The estimation of prevalence rate of hepatitis B (HBV) in blood donors and hepatitis D (HDV) infection in HBV carriers is important in estimating the prognosis of hepatitis due to more severe rate of liver disease in HDV/HBV co-infected patients. The aim of the study was to analyze the prevalence of HBV in blood donors and HDV among hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positive-blood donors in Shiraz, Fars, Iran. This cross-sectional study was performed between 21 March, 2009 and 21 March, 2010 on Shiraz blood donors. The prevalence of HBV was surveyed. Then demographic characteristics, route of transmission and prevalence of HDV were surveyed on a random sample of donors who had positive result of confirmatory HBsAg in screening tests. The prevalence rate of HBV in all donors was 263/96646 (0.27%). The prevalence of HDV in random sample of HBV patients was 4/185 (2.2%). The most common route of transmission was positive family history 41/185 (22.3%), unsafe sexual contact 11/185 (5.9%), history of tattooing 9/185 (4.86%), intravenous drug abuse 5/185 (2.7%) and history of receiving blood or blood products 5/185 (2.7%) and there was no data about transmission route of the 147/185 (79.5%). There was no difference between route of transmission, level of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), hepatitis B envelope antigen (HBeAg), hepatitis B envelope antibody (HBeAb) and protrombin time (PT) between positive and negative groups (P>0.05). The prevalence of HBV in our province decreased from 0.89% in 1998 to 0.27% in 2009 due to improvement in recruitment of low-risk donors and better donor selection. The prevalence of HDV in our blood donors was low and same as other studies on blood donors or asymptomatic carrier.