Seroprevalence for hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection among volunteer blood donors of the Regional Blood Bank of Londrina, State of Paraná , Brazil

A cross-sectional study was carried out among 996 volunteer blood donors enrolled from May 1999 to December 1999 to determine the seroprevalence of hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection among volunteer blood donors of the Regional Blood Bank of Londrina, State of Paraná, Brazil, and to evaluate whether the rate of seroprevalence of IgG anti-HEV antibodies is associated with sociodemographic variables and with seropositivity for hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection. All participants answered the questionnaire regarding the sociodemographic characterisitcs. Serum samples were tested for IgG antibodies to HEV (anti-HEV) by an enzyme linked immunoassay (ELISA). All serum samples positive for anti-HEV IgG and 237 serum samples negative for anti-HEV were also assayed for IgG anti-HAV antibodies by ELISA. Anti-HEV IgG was confirmed in 23/996 samples, resulting in a seroprevalence of 2.3% for HEV infection, similar to previous results obtained in developed countries. No significant association was found between the presence of anti-HEV IgG antibodies and the sociodemographic variables including gender, age, educational level, rural or urban areas, source of water, and sewer system (p > 0.05). Also, no association with seropositivity for anti-HAV IgG antibodies was observed (p > 0.05). Although this study revealed a low seroprevalence of HEV infection in the population evaluated, the results showed that this virus is circulating among the population from Londrina, South Brazil, and point out the need of further studies to define the clinical and epidemiological importance of HEV infection and to identify additional risk factors involved in the epidemiology and pathogenesis of this infection in this population.

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Hepatitis E in Norway: seroprevalence in humans and swine

Epidemiology and Infection ◽

10.1017/s0950268816002144 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 145 (1) ◽

pp. 181-186 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

H. LANGE ◽

J. ØVERBØ ◽

K. BORGEN ◽

S. DUDMAN ◽

G. HODDEVIK ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Direct Contact ◽

Hepatitis E Virus ◽

Blood Donors ◽

Hepatitis E ◽

Farm Workers ◽

Published Data ◽

Igg Antibodies ◽

Swine Farm ◽

High Seroprevalence ◽

Serum Samples

SUMMARYIn Norway, no published data on seroprevalence of hepatitis E virus (HEV) in humans and swine exists. Serum samples from blood donors, veterinarians, swine farm workers and swine were analysed by ELISA to estimate the seroprevalence of HEV in Norway and to investigate the association between direct contact with swine and HEV seroprevalence in humans. The seroprevalence of HEV IgG antibodies was 30% (24/79) in farm workers, 13% (21/163) in veterinarians, 14% (162/1200) in blood donors and 90% (137/153) in swine. Our results show a high seroprevalence of HEV in humans and swine in Norway. HEV seroprevalence in farm workers and blood donors increased with age, and veterinarians working with swine were twice as likely to be HEV seropositive compared to other veterinarians. High HEV seroprevalence in farm workers and veterinarians working with swine support previous reports suggesting swine as a reservoir for HEV infections in humans in Europe.

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Seroprevalence of the hepatitis E virus antibodies among blood donors in the Qassim region, Saudi Arabia

Future Virology ◽

10.2217/fvl-2021-0013 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Bader Y Alhatlani ◽

Waleed A Aljabr ◽

Mohammed S Almarzouqi ◽

Sami M Alhatlani ◽

Rayan N Alzunaydi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Saudi Arabia ◽

Blood Transfusion ◽

Hepatitis E Virus ◽

Blood Donors ◽

Indirect Elisa ◽

Hepatitis E ◽

Public Health Issue ◽

Serum Samples ◽

Major Public Health Issue

Aim: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) transmission through blood transfusion is a major public health issue worldwide. We aimed to determine the seroprevalence of HEV in blood donors in the Qassim region of Saudi Arabia. Materials & methods: Serum samples (n = 1078) were collected from volunteer blood donors and tested for the presence of anti-HEV IgG and IgM by indirect ELISA. Results: The seroprevalence of anti-HEV IgG among the blood donors was 5.7% overall. Anti-HEV IgG and IgM seropositivity were significantly higher in non-Saudi donors than in Saudi donors (22.1 vs 3 and 7.8 vs 0.2% for anti-HEV IgG and IgM, respectively). Conclusion: The seroprevalence of HEV among blood donors in the Qassim region was lower than previous estimates for other regions of the country and neighboring countries.

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Diagnostic Performance of Five Assays for Anti-Hepatitis E Virus IgG and IgM in a Large Cohort Study

Journal of Clinical Microbiology ◽

10.1128/jcm.02343-15 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 54 (3) ◽

pp. 549-555 ◽

Cited By ~ 55

Author(s):

Heléne Norder ◽

Marie Karlsson ◽

Åsa Mellgren ◽

Jan Konar ◽

Elisabeth Sandberg ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gold Standard ◽

Diagnostic Performance ◽

Hepatitis E Virus ◽

Blood Donors ◽

Laboratory Diagnosis ◽

Hepatitis E ◽

Serum Samples ◽

Large Cohort Study ◽

No Gold Standard

Determination of anti-hepatitis E virus (anti-HEV) antibodies is still enigmatic. There is no gold standard, and results obtained with different assays often diverge. Herein, five assays were compared for detection of anti-HEV IgM and IgG. Serum samples from 500 Swedish blood donors and 316 patients, of whom 136 had suspected HEV infection, were analyzed. Concordant results for IgM and IgG with all assays were obtained only for 71% and 70% of patients with suspected hepatitis E, respectively. The range of sensitivity for anti-HEV detection was broad (42% to 96%); this was reflected in the detection limit, which varied up to 19-fold for IgM and 17-fold for IgG between assays. HEV RNA was analyzed in all patients and in those blood donors reactive for anti-HEV in any assay, and it was found in 26 individuals. Among all of the assays, both anti-HEV IgG and IgM were detected in 10 of those individuals. Twelve had only IgG and, in 7 of those 12, IgG was only detected with the two most sensitive assays. Three of the HEV-RNA-positive samples were negative for anti-HEV IgM and IgG in all assays. With the two most sensitive assays, anti-HEV IgG was identified in 16% of the blood donor samples and in 66% of patients with suspected HEV infection. Because several HEV-RNA-positive samples had only anti-HEV IgG without anti-HEV IgM or lacked anti-HEV antibodies, analysis for HEV RNA may be warranted as a complement in the laboratory diagnosis of ongoing HEV infection.

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Seroprevalence of hepatitis E virus among blood donors on Corsica, France, 2017

Eurosurveillance ◽

10.2807/1560-7917.es.2020.25.5.1900336 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 25 (5) ◽

Author(s):

Lisandru Capai ◽

Nathanaël Hozé ◽

Jacques Chiaroni ◽

Sylvie Gross ◽

Rachid Djoudi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatitis E Virus ◽

Blood Donors ◽

Acute Viral Hepatitis ◽

Hepatitis E ◽

Igg Antibodies ◽

Zoonotic Pathogen ◽

Force Of Infection ◽

Hyperendemic Area ◽

Annual Probability ◽

Significant Difference

Background Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is an emerging zoonotic pathogen and an important cause of acute viral hepatitis in European countries. Corsica Island has been previously identified as a hyperendemic area for HEV. Aim Our aim was to characterise the prevalence and titres of IgG antibodies to HEV among blood donors on Corsica and establish a model of the annual force of infection. Methods Between September 2017 and January 2018, 2,705 blood donations were tested for anti-HEV IgG using the Wantai HEV IgG enzyme immunoassay. Results The overall seroprevalence was 56.1%. In multivariate analysis, seroprevalence was higher in men than in women (60.0% vs 52.2%; p < 0.01), increased with age and was significantly higher among donors born on Corsica (60.6% vs 53.2%; p < 0.01). No significant difference was observed between the five districts of the island. IgG anti-HEV titres were mostly low (70% of positive donors had titres < 3 IU/mL). In Corsican natives, increasing seroprevalence by age could be explained by models capturing a loss of immunity (annual probability of infection: 4.5%; duration of immunity: 55 years) or by age-specific probabilities of infection (3.8% for children, 1.3% for adults). Conclusion We confirmed the high HEV seroprevalence on Corsica and identified three aspects that should be further explored: (i) the epidemiology in those younger than 18 years, (ii) common sources of contamination, in particular drinking water, that may explain the wide exposure of the population, and (iii) the actual protection afforded by the low IgG titres observed and the potential susceptibility to secondary HEV infection.

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Seroprevalence of the hepatitis E virus among blood donors in the Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia

10.21203/rs.3.rs-18073/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Bader Alhatlani ◽

Waleed Aljabr ◽

Mohammed Almarzouqi ◽

Sami Alhatlani ◽

Rayan Alzunaydi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Saudi Arabia ◽

Blood Transfusion ◽

Hepatitis E Virus ◽

Blood Donors ◽

Geographical Area ◽

Hepatitis E ◽

Public Health Issue ◽

Serum Samples ◽

Major Public Health Issue

Abstract Objectives The aim of this study was to evaluate the seroprevalence of hepatitis E virus (HEV), a major public health issue worldwide with the potential for transmission via blood transfusion, in blood donors in the Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia. Serum samples (n = 1,078) were collected from volunteer blood donors from January to April 2019 and tested for the presence of anti-HEV IgG and IgM by indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Results Overall, the seroprevalence of anti-HEV IgG and IgM among blood donors was 5.7% and 1.3%, respectively. Additionally, the seropositive rates of anti-HEV IgG and IgM were significantly higher in non-Saudi donors (22.1% and 7.8%) than in Saudi donors (3% and 0.2%). The seroprevalence of anti-HEV IgG increased with age; however, there was no correlation between gender and anti-HEV IgG and/or IgM. The seroprevalence of HEV among blood donors in the Qassim Region was lower than previous estimates for other regions of the country. Further studies covering a wider geographical area are needed to validate and expand the findings and to determine the importance of HEV screening in the region.

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High prevalence of anti-hepatitis E virus antibodies among blood donors in central Italy, February to March 2014

Eurosurveillance ◽

10.2807/1560-7917.es.2016.21.30.30299 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 21 (30) ◽

Cited By ~ 38

Author(s):

Claudia Lucarelli ◽

Enea Spada ◽

Gloria Taliani ◽

Paola Chionne ◽

Elisabetta Madonna ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatitis E Virus ◽

Blood Donors ◽

Dietary Habits ◽

Central Italy ◽

Hepatitis E ◽

Developed Countries ◽

Genotype 3 ◽

Recent Infection ◽

Assay Sensitivity ◽

Prevalence Rate Ratio

Prevalence of anti-hepatitis E virus (HEV) antibodies is highly variable in developed countries, which seems partly due to differences in assay sensitivity. Using validated sensitive assays, we tested 313 blood donors attending a hospital transfusion unit in central Italy in January and February 2014 for anti-HEV IgG and IgM and HEV RNA. Data on HEV exposure were collected from all donors. Overall anti-HEV IgG prevalence was 49% (153/313). Eating raw dried pig-liver sausage was the only independent predictor of HEV infection (adjusted prevalence rate ratio = 2.14; 95% confidence interval: 1.23–3.74). Three donors were positive for either anti-HEV IgM (n = 2; 0.6%) or HEV RNA (n = 2; 0.6%); they were completely asymptomatic, without alanine aminotransferase (ALT) abnormalities. Of the two HEV RNA-positive donors (both harbouring genotype 3), one was anti-HEV IgG- and IgM-positive, the other was anti-HEV IgG- and IgM-negative. The third donor was positive for anti-HEV IgG and IgM but HEV RNA-negative. HEV infection is therefore hyperendemic among blood donors (80% men 18–64 years-old) from central Italy and associated with local dietary habits. Nearly 1% of donors have acute or recent infection, implying potential transmission to blood recipients. Neither ALT nor anti-HEV IgM testing seems useful to prevent transfusion-transmitted HEV infection.

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Low Hepatitis E Virus Prevalence Among Blood Donor in Dali in China

10.21203/rs.3.rs-118265/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Ping Fu ◽

Baochai Lin ◽

Bingting Wu ◽

Ling Ke ◽

Tianfu Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Blood Transfusion ◽

Ethnic Minority ◽

Odds Ratio ◽

Hepatitis E Virus ◽

Blood Donors ◽

Hepatitis E ◽

Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay ◽

Serum Samples ◽

Iga Antibodies ◽

Positive Rate

Abstract BACKGROUND: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a nonenveloped RNA virus causing Hepatitis E worldwide. An increasing transfusion transmission cases of HEV infections from asymptomatic blood donors which causing serious illnesses in immunosuppressed recipients have been reported in the past few years. China is one of the highly prevalent regions of HEV, it is important to evaluate the risk of HEV transmission from blood transfusion. METHODS: A total of 1864 serum samples from blood donors and demographic characteristics were randomly collected from Feb to Mar 2018 in Dali city. Anti-HEV IgG, IgM and IgA antibodies and HEV antigen were examined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). HEV RNA was detected by real-time PCR. Multivariable logistic regression modelling was used to examine risk factors associated with HEV prevalence.RESULTS: Overall, the positive rate of anti-HEV IgG, IgM, and IgA antibodies was 13.36% (249/1864), 1.13%(21/1864), and 1.82%(34/1864), respectively. However, none of the 1864 serum samples was detected as HEV antigen-positive nor HEV RNA positive. The positive rate of anti-HEV IgG antibody is high as 28.57% (2/7) in the donors with isolated elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT). Females (16.69%) had a significantly higher HEV seroprevalence than males (13.04%) (odds ratio [OR]: 1.34 [95% CI, 1.02-1.75]). Other ethnic minority (24.32%) and Bai (18.85%) donors had a significantly higher HEV seroprevalence when compared to Han (12.21%) blood donors (odds ratio [OR], 2.25 [95% CI, 1.04-4.88] for other ethnic minority, 1.65 [95% CI, 1.24-2.19] for Bai). Conclusions: Dali, Yunnan province, China is an endemic region for HEV and have a relatively low risk of HEV transmission via blood transfusion. Whether to formulate the strategy for HEV screening in blood center needed further researched.

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Hepatitis E virus as a trigger for Guillain-Barré syndrome

BMC Neurology ◽

10.1186/s12883-021-02334-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Miriam Fritz-Weltin ◽

Estelle Frommherz ◽

Nora Isenmann ◽

Lisa Niedermeier ◽

Benedikt Csernalabics ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cerebrospinal Fluid ◽

Hepatitis E Virus ◽

Acute Infection ◽

Hepatitis E ◽

Guillain Barre Syndrome ◽

Igg Antibodies ◽

Serum Samples ◽

Regional Variations ◽

Guillain Barré Syndrome ◽

Guillain Barré

Abstract Background Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is the most common cause of acute viral hepatitis worldwide. An association with neuralgic amyotrophy and Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) was previously described. Concerning GBS, studies from other countries found an acute HEV infection in 5–11% of cases. However, HEV prevalence shows considerable regional variations. Therefore, we retrospectively analyzed the frequency of HEV infections in association with GBS in a monocentric cohort in Southwestern Germany. Methods Overall, 163 patients with GBS treated in our clinic between 2008 and 2018 of whom serum and/or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples were available, were identified. Serum samples were analyzed for anti-HEV immunoglobulin (Ig)M and IgG antibodies by ELISA. Additionally, both serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples were tested for HEV RNA by PCR if IgM was positive or patients presented within the first 7 days from GBS symptom onset. A group of 167 healthy volunteers and 96 healthy blood donors served as controls. Results An acute HEV infection was found in two GBS patients (1.2%) with anti-HEV IgM and IgG antibodies. HEV PCR in serum and CSF was negative in these two patients as well as in all other tested cases. Seroprevalences indicated that acute infection did not differ significantly from controls (0.8%). Anti-HEV IgG seroprevalence indicating previous infection was unexpectedly high (41%) and revealed an age-dependent increase to more than 50% in patients older than 60 years. Conclusion In this study, serological evidence of an acute HEV infection in patients with GBS was rare and not different from controls. Comparing our data with previous studies, incidence rates show considerable regional variations.

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Low Hepatitis E virus prevalence among blood donor in Dali in China

10.21203/rs.3.rs-118265/v2 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ping Fu ◽

Baochai Lin ◽

Bingting Wu ◽

Ling Ke ◽

Tianfu Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Blood Transfusion ◽

Ethnic Minority ◽

Odds Ratio ◽

Hepatitis E Virus ◽

Blood Donors ◽

Hepatitis E ◽

Serum Samples ◽

Iga Antibodies ◽

Positive Rate

Abstract BACKGROUND: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a nonenveloped RNA virus causing Hepatitis E worldwide. An increasing transfusion transmission cases of HEV infections from asymptomatic blood donors which causing serious illnesses in immunosuppressed recipients have been reported in the past few years. China is one of the highly prevalent regions of HEV, it is important to evaluate the risk of HEV transmission from blood transfusion. METHODS: A total of 1864 serum samples from blood donors and demographic characteristics were randomly collected from Feb to Mar 2018 in Dali city. Anti-HEV IgG, IgM and IgA antibodies and HEV antigen were examined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). HEV RNA was detected by real-time PCR. Multivariable logistic regression modelling was used to examine risk factors associated with HEV prevalence.RESULTS: Overall, the positive rate of anti-HEV IgG, IgM, and IgA antibodies was 13.36% (249/1864), 1.13%(21/1864), and 1.82%(34/1864), respectively. However, none of the 1864 serum samples was detected as HEV antigen-positive nor HEV RNA positive. The positive rate of anti-HEV IgG antibody is high as 28.57% (2/7) in the donors with isolated elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT). Females (16.69%) had a significantly higher HEV seroprevalence than males (13.04%) (odds ratio [OR]: 1.34 [95% CI, 1.02-1.75]). Other ethnic minority (24.32%) and Bai (18.85%) donors had a significantly higher HEV seroprevalence when compared to Han (12.21%) blood donors (odds ratio [OR], 2.25 [95% CI, 1.04-4.88] for other ethnic minority, 1.65 [95% CI, 1.24-2.19] for Bai). Conclusions: Dali, Yunnan province, China is an endemic region f of hepatitis E virus, and women, Bai and other ethnic minorities may be potential risk factors for hepatitis E virus infection.. The risk of transmission of hepatitis E virus through blood transfusion is relatively low, and the specific risk value needs to be further tested by expanding the sample size. Whether to formulate the strategy for HEV screening in blood center needed further researched.

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