Hepatitis E virus seroprevalence among blood donors in Jiangsu Province, East China

摘要

SummaryObjective Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is responsible for over 50% of acute viral hepatitis cases, and the blood transfusion route has emerged as a possible means of sporadic {HEV} infection. The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of {HEV} among blood donors in East China. Methods Blood samples were collected consecutively between January and June 2011 from 486 blood donors living in Jiangsu Province, East China. Anti-HEV IgG was tested by ELISA. Results One hundred and thirteen blood donors developed {HEV} IgG antibody, indicating the prevalence of {HEV} IgG seropositivity to be 23.3%. {HEV} IgG seropositivity was 25.3% (90/356) in the male group, significantly higher than that in the female group (17.7%, 23/130) (p < 0.05). The donors who had donated more than 10 times had significantly higher {HEV} IgG seropositivity than the other groups (p < 0.05). Furthermore, donors aged 50–55 years had significantly higher {HEV} IgG seropositivity than the other age groups (p < 0.05). Conclusions We investigated {HEV} seroprevalence among blood donors in East China. Our data will help identify the risk factors for {HEV} infection and provide guidance on controlling the safety of blood transfusions in the clinical setting.