Seroprevalence of HIV and hepatitis C co-infection among blood donors in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal.
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Date
2009-01-28
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Abstract
We assessed the seroprevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in different categories of blood donors and the hepatitis C virus (HCV) co-infection rate. A total of 33,255 blood samples were screened for HIV using a third generation ELISA test at the Central Blood Transfusion Service, Nepal Red Cross Society, Kathmandu from December 2006 to September 2007. The seroprevalence of HIV was 0.19% (95% CI= 0.15-0.25) and co-infection with HCV was found in 10.8% (95% CI= 4.4-20.9). There were no significant differences in HIV seroprevalence among the different categories of age, sex, type of donation and time of donation. The study revealed a relatively lower seroprevalence of HIV among blood donors in Kathmandu Valley than reported earlier but a higher HCV co-infection rate. The similar seroprevalence between first time and repeat donors suggests the need for more improved donor education and counselling.
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The Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health.
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Karki S, Ghimire P, Tiwari BR, Shrestha AC, Gautam A, Rajkarnikar M. Seroprevalence of HIV and hepatitis C co-infection among blood donors in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. The Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health. 2009 Jan; 40(1): 66-70