Nationwide Hospital-Based Seroprevalence of Hepatitis A and Hepatitis E Virus in Bangladesh

• Published in: Annals of global health 2020-03, Vol.86 (1), p.29-29
• Main Authors: Khan, Ashraful Islam, Salimuzzaman, M, Islam, Md Taufiqul, Afrad, Mokibul Hassan, Shirin, Tahmina, Jony, Monjur Hossain Khan, Alam, Md Ashraful, Rahman, Mahmudur, Flora, Meerjady Sabrina, Qadri, Firdausi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anorexia; Disease transmission; Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; Epidemiology; Food; Foodborne diseases; Hepatitis; Hepatitis A; Hospitals; Illnesses; Immunoglobulin M; Infections; Infectious diseases; Low income areas; Oral administration; Original Research; Patients; Population; Regression analysis; Risk factors; Sanitation; Serology; Socioeconomics; Software; Surveillance; Vaccination; Viruses; Womens health; Young adults
• ISSN: 2214-9996; 2214-9996
• DOI: 10.5334/aogh.2574

Hepatitis A virus (HAV) and hepatitis E virus (HEV) are transmitted by the fecal-oral route and are responsible for epidemic and sporadic outbreaks of acute hepatitis in low-income countries like Bangladesh. The purpose of this study was to describe the seroprevalence of acute hepatitis due to HAV and HEV infection in Bangladesh. The nationwide food-borne illness surveillance started in 2014 at 10 different hospitals which covered seven divisions of Bangladesh. Blood samples were collected from suspected acute hepatitis cases and screened for the anti-HAV IgM and anti-HEV IgM using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Participants' socioeconomic status, clinical, sanitation and food history were recorded. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to determine the risk factors associated with HAV and HEV infection. A total of 998 patients were enrolled and tested for both HAV and HEV. Among these, 19% (191/998) were identified as HAV positive and 10% (103/998) were HEV positive. The median age was 12 years and 25 years for HAV and HEV positive patients, respectively. The prevalence of HAV was higher among the females (24.9%), whereas HEV was higher among males (11.2%). The highest occurrence of HAV was observed among children while HEV was most prevalent in the 15-60 years age group (12.4%). Through our nationwide surveillance, it is evident that hepatitis A and hepatitis E infection is common in Bangladesh. These data will be useful towards planning preventive and control measures by strengthening the sanitation programs and vaccination strategies in Bangladesh.