ABSTRACT
Background: Hepatitis C virus [HCV] is one of the main causative factors of liver disease which can lead to chronic hepatitis C infection in 80% of cases. HCV genotypes have a special worldwide geographic distribution. The goal of the present study was to detect HCV genotypes in patients with anti-HCV positive titers in Golestan Province, Iran
Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 95 positive HCV samples as detected by RIBA were evaluated. Viral RNA was extracted with a Roche extraction kit and the Fermentase cDNA kit Random hexamer primers was used for viral genomic cDNA synthesis. PCR was performed on all samples by a general pair of primers. Second-step PCR was done with specific primers, and the results were obtained following electrophoresis in 1.5% agarose gel and ethidium bromide staining in documentation gel
Results: General primer PCR revealed 91 positive samples. Assessment of 77 samples determined that the following genotypes were present: 1 and 3 [1a [19.5%], 1b [19.5%], 3a [15.6%], 3b [24.7%]], 2a [2.6%], 4 [7.8%]. The remaining samples were a mixture of genotypes 1 and 3 [6.5%]
Conclusion: The ingmost prevalent genotypes found were types 1 and 3 in Golestan Province. This distribution pattern differed from other areas in Iran, however genotype 4 was in accordance with other studies. Genotype 2 was only reported in this study and a study in Tehran. Thus, additional, larger studies of HCV genotypes should be performed for further analysis of genotypic distribution patterns
ABSTRACT
Background and Objective: in all of world, a portion of household income expends on health care cost. Amount and distribution of the proportion indicate financial burden of health care in the societies. WHO believes that one of the main determinants in health system efficiency is fairness of financial contribution. This study aimed distribution pattern of urban households' income, health expenditure by cost types and measuring of equality on health care costs in the Gorgan district
Materials and Methods: in order to establish the population laboratory, this cross-sectional study assessed 1014 household in the Gorgan health posts [No 4 and 8] on January 2003. health insurance status, monthly household income and monthly health care cost gathered through interviewing with the husbandmans
Results: health insurance coverage was 67% in highest and 44% in lowest income deciles [P<0.05]. Median and mean of assessed households' income and household health care cost were 1200000 Rls, [1669669+/-187300 Rls] and 80000 Rls, [281530+/-95124 Rls] respectively. Mean of median of out of pocket proportion health care cost per households' income was 0.57+/-0.03 and 0.66 respectively. 13% of total income expended health care cost through out of pocket. This proportion in highest and lowest income decile was 7% and 28% [P<0.05]. Gini coefficient of health care cost and out of pocket cost per total household income were 0.22 and 0.18 respectively
Conclusion: low income households expended almost 40% of their income in order to purchasing of health care, in comparison to richest households, they spent 9% of total income. Instead of, additive development of health insurance systems and complementary insurance mechanisms, a half of health care cost in the population spend by out of pocket. According to WHO standards of health system performance, revising health insurance system and payment mechanisms are mandatory