Dataset Information

Seroprevalence and trends of hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus and human immunodeficiency virus in Syrian blood donors at Damascus University Blood Center between 2004 and 2021.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Seroprevalence of transfusion-transmitted viral infections (TTVIs) is a valuable indicator for assessing blood safety, population health and health system performance in the times of peace and conflicts. Only scarce information is available on the impact of the decade-long violent conflict on the prevalence of TTVIs in Syria. Moreover, hepatitis B vaccine was introduced to the national vaccination program in 1993; however, no data is available on the vaccine effectiveness.

Methods

In this retrospective cross-sectional study, we compiled the screening results for major TTVIs, namely hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human immuno-deficiency virus (HIV), of volunteer donors at Damascus University Blood Center from May 2004 to October 2021. Prevalence was expressed in percentages for the entire study group and subgroups. Chi-square test and linear regression were used to examine the differences and describe trends in prevalence, respectively, based on demographic characteristics (i.e., age and gender) and time. P-value of <0.005 was considered statistically significant.

Results

Of the total 307,774 donors (82.27% males, median age 27 years), 5,929 (1.93%) had serological evidence of at least one TTVI, and 26 (0.0085%) had multiple infections. The lowest prevalence (1.09%) was detected in donors aged 18-25 years old, and a higher prevalence (2.05%) was evident in males in comparison with females (1.38%). The seroprevalence of HBV, HCV, and HIV was 1.18, 0.52, and 0.23%, respectively. Trend analyses revealed a significant regression in HBV and HIV prevalence from 2011 to 2021. HBV seropositivity depicted a temporal decline by ~80%, from 0.79% in 2011 to 0.16% in 2021 in those born in 1993 and thereafter.

Discussion

The seroprevalence of HBV, HIV, and to a lesser extent HCV dropped over the study 18-year period. Possible explanations may include implementation of the HBV vaccine, robust national health system, conservative sociocultural values, and isolation.

SUBMITTER: Alassad A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10267398 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Seroprevalence and trends of hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus and human immunodeficiency virus in Syrian blood donors at Damascus University Blood Center between 2004 and 2021.

Alassad Alia A Al Rahwanji Mhd Jawad MJ Yousfan Amal A Al Moualem Sally S Farhat Arwa A Youssef Lama A LA

Frontiers in public health 20230601

<h4>Introduction</h4>Seroprevalence of transfusion-transmitted viral infections (TTVIs) is a valuable indicator for assessing blood safety, population health and health system performance in the times of peace and conflicts. Only scarce information is available on the impact of the decade-long violent conflict on the prevalence of TTVIs in Syria. Moreover, hepatitis B vaccine was introduced to the national vaccination program in 1993; however, no data is available on the vaccine effectiveness.<h ...[more]

PMID: 37325302

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Project description:BackgroundTransfusion Transmitted Infections (TTIs) are still a growing public health problem in Africa. Studies that synthesize the available evidence on the seroprevalence of Hepatitis B Surface Antigen (HBsAg) among African blood donors are scarce. Therefore, this study aimed to synthesize qualitatively and quantitatively the seroprevalence of Hepatitis B Virus Surface Antigen (HBsAg) among blood donors in Africa.MethodsWe conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis where we included all studies that reported the seroprevalence of HBsAg among blood donors in Africa. The references were searched from electronic databases: PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, Scopus, WHO research database-HINARI, Global Index Medicus and ClinicalTrials.gov. We further analyzed the full list of references of all included studies. The pooled seroprevalence was estimated through random effect model. The heterogeneity was assessed through Cochrane's Q test and I 2, respectively. Meta-regression, subgroup and sensitivity analyses were conducted.ResultsWe obtained 124 studies that met our inclusion criteria, comprising 3,573,211 blood donors tested for HBsAg. The pooled seroprevalence of HBsAg among blood donors in Africa was 6.93% (95% CI: 5.95-7.97%; I 2 = 100%; p < 0.001). We found that the heterogeneity was explained by the study performed country and, African region. The higher prevalence was observed in Western 10.09% (95% CI: 8.75-11.50%), Central 7.81% (95% CI: 5.34-10.71%), and Eastern African region 4.87% (95% CI: 3.77-6.11%) and lower prevalence were observed in Southern 2.47% (95% CI: 0.54-5.75%) followed by Northern Africa region with 1.73% (95% CI: 0.45-3.79%). Additionally, based on the date of publication, we found that the highest prevalence was observed in studies published between 2001 and 2010 (9.41, 95% CI: 7.19-11.90) and the lowest prevalence was observed in studies published between 2011 and 2024 (6.26%; 95% CI: 5.19-7.42).ConclusionThe seroprevalence of HBsAg among blood donors in Africa is still very high and heterogeneous. Therefore, intensifying the screening and vaccination of the population for Hepatitis B is critical to ensure blood safety toward eliminating Hepatitis B in Africa.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=395616, PROSPERO CRD42023395616.

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Dataset Information

Seroprevalence and trends of hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus and human immunodeficiency virus in Syrian blood donors at Damascus University Blood Center between 2004 and 2021.

Introduction

Methods

Results

Discussion

Publications

Seroprevalence and trends of hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus and human immunodeficiency virus in Syrian blood donors at Damascus University Blood Center between 2004 and 2021.

Similar Datasets

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