Seroprevalence and determinants of hepatitis-c virus infection in blood donors of Lahore,Pakistan

The current study was designed to investigate the seroprevalence of hepatitis c in blood donors and also to find out the risk factors associated with its occurrence. an analytical cross sectional study was conducted at blood banks of various public and private hospitals of lahore during the year 2009. a total of 245 blood donors were selected through systematic random sampling technique. blood samples were collected and processed to confirm the anti-hcv status and data was collected on pre tested questionnaires to identify the risk factors. the seroprevalence of hcv was estimated to be 17.78%. female to male ratio was 1:16.5. it was found that the occupational status (p=0.002,or=3.789,95% ci=1.515-9.473),place of surgical treatment (p=0.035),history of blood transfusion (p=0.000,or=6.364,95% ci=2.38-17.02),ever pricked by sharps (p=0.045,or=2.893,95% ci=0.979-8.543),habit of injecting drugs (p=0.04,or=2.45,95% ci=0.995-6.062) and glass sharing (p=0.017,or=2.327,95% ci=1.145- 4.731) were significantly associated with occurrence of hepatitis c in blood donors. the overall prevalence of hcv in blood donors was very high that could increase the spread of disease which demands the use of a highly sensitive screening test before blood transfusion. copyright 2013 zoological society of pakistan.