Prevalence of hepatitis B and C virus infection among women in Jeju Island, Republic of Korea.

Hepatitis B and C virus infection prevalence was investigated in the Island of Jeju (formerly Cheju), the Republic of Korea, by means of a small-scale sero-epidemiological survey in 2000. Adult women in the city of Jeju (the provincial capital) and two fishing-farming villages A and B were invited to offer venous blood samples for immunological examination for infection markers of two virus and serum biochemistry for liver function. In practice, 66 married women (33, 16 and 17 women from the city, Village A and Village B, respectively) volunteered. Sera were separated on site and were assayed for HBsAg, anti-HBs, anti-HBc, and anti-HCV positivities and liver function markers including AST, ALT and gamma-GTP. The serum assay showed that the prevalence of HbsAg+ or anti-HCV+ cases was low (5 and 2%, respectively), whereas that of anti-HBs+ and anti-HBc+ cases were high (71 and 62%) so that the over-all HBV positivity was 82%. There were essentially no urban-rural difference or age-dependent changes in the positivity. Comparison with the prevalence reported in literature shows that prevalence of HBsAg+ and anti-HCV+ is in general agreement with the values reported for the populations in general, but HBV+ prevalence might be somewhat higher than the levels reported for the general populations.

Hepatitis B and C virus infection among adult women in Jilin Province, China: an urban-rural comparison in prevalence of infection markers.

Twin seroepidemiological surveys on prevalence of hepatitis B and C virus (HBV and HCV, respectively) infection were conducted on 100 adult women in total, 50 each in the provincial capital of Changchun and in a farming village in the vicinity in Jilin Province, northeast China. Positivity to three markers on HBV (ie HBsAg+, anti-HBs+, and anti-HBc+) was examined by RIA methods, and to one on HCV (anti-HCV+) by EIA. The results were evaluated in combination with two foregoing studies in Shandong and Shaanxi Provinces, and with special reference to possible urban-rural differences in prevalence. The prevalence of HBsAg+ cases was rather low (ie 9% when two groups were combined), but that of anti-HBs+ and anti-HBc+ cases was high, being 50% and 45%, respectively. Thus, the rate of HBV+ cases was 62%. The rate for HCV+ cases was 3%. The comparison of the prevalence between the city group and the village group showed that the rates for anti-HBs+ and HBV+ were significantly or marginally higher in the former group than in the latter, respectively. The HCV+ prevalence rate for the city group (4%) also tended to be higher than the corresponding rates for the village group (2%), although the difference was statistically insignificant. When evaluated together with the observation in Shandong and Shaanxi Provinces, it appears possible to generalize that the HBV infection prevalence is not higher and probably lower in rural areas than in urban areas, and that such may also be the case for the HCV infection prevalence.

Prevalence of hepatitis B and C virus infection among working women in Bangkok.

A small-scale seroepidemiological survey on hepatitis B and C virus infection was conducted in the vicinity of Bangkok, Thailand, in 1998. Adult women working in a health sciences institution were invited to participate in the study, and 52 subjects (19 to 57 years of age) volunteered to offer peripheral blood. They were non-smoking and non-habitually drinking, and about two thirds of the subjects were married. The sera from the blood samples were assayed for HBsAg, anti-HBs, anti-HBc, and anti-HCV positivities. The serum assay showed that none of the subjects was positive to HBsAg or anti-HCV, but a half of the subjects (50%) were either positive to anti-HBs, to anti-HBc or to the both, thus having experienced HBV infection in the past. The prevalence of the positivities was significantly higher among those at 35-57 years of age than those younger than 35 years. Comparison of the present findings with the results reported in literature suggested that the risk of HBV infection should have been higher than that of HCV infection, that the observed positivity of HBV infection was probably lower than ever reported, and that anti-HCV positivity should be the lowest.

Prevalence of hepatitis B and C infection markers among adult women in urban and rural areas in Shaanxi Province, China.

In an attempt to investigate possible urban-rural difference in prevalence of hepatitis B and C virus (HBV and HCV, respectively) infection in continental China, triplet surveys on HBV and HCV infection markers (ie, HBsAg, anti-HBs, anti-HBc, and anti-HCV) and serum enzyme levels (AST, ALT and gamma-GTP) were conducted in 1997 on groups of apparently healthy adult women (49 to 50 subjects per group); one group (the City group) was in Xian, the provincial capital of Shaanxi Province, and two others (the Village A group and the Village B group) were in farming villages in the Province some 200 and 25 km away from Xian, respectively. Comparison among the three groups showed that there was no urban-rural difference in prevalence of HBV and HCV infection positive (HBV+ and HCV+) cases and that the overall prevalence of HBV+ and HCV+ cases was 70% and 3%, respectively. HBsAg+ prevalence was however higher in the villages (8% when the two villages were combined) than in the city (2%). HBV infection was not associated in general with apparent increase in emission enzyme levels in the serum, whereas HCV infection might be associated with an increase in ALT, AST and gamma-GTP. The present observation in combination with other previously published results suggests that urban-rural difference will not be remarkable in HBV and HCV infection prevalence in Continental China and that the public health problem is more serious with HBV infection and quite less so with HCV infection.

Hepatitis B and C virus infection prevalence among women in Manila, the Philippines.

A seroepidemiological survey of HBsAg, HBeAg, anti-HBs, anti-HBc, anti-HBe and anti-HCV positivities was conducted in 1997 in Manila, The Philippines. Adult women (21 to 59 years of age) were invited to donate peripheral blood for the study, and 50 people volunteered. They were nonsmokers, nonhabitual drinkers, and mostly married; none of them was a professional blood donor. The serum assay showed that all subjects were negative for HBsAg and HBeAg. Overall, a half (50%) of the study subjects were positive for any one of the HBV infection markers (i.e. HBV+). The older group (25 women at 36-59 years of age) showed significantly higher prevalence than the younger group (25 women at 21-35 years of age) of positivity to all three HBV antibody markers and therefore HBV positivity also. None of the study subjects was positive for anti-HCV. Comparison of the present findings with the results reported in the literature for the 1980s suggests that the risk of HBV infection and most probably that of HCV infection also has decreased in this 10-year period in the Philippines.

Urban-rural comparison of HBV and HCV infection prevalence among adult women in Shandong Province, China.

In order to make urban-rural comparison of the prevalence of hepatitis B and C virus (HBV and HCV, respectively) infection in China, a twin survey was conducted in 1996 on two groups (50 subjects each) of 21-55 year-old, apparently healthy women for infection markers and serum enzyme levels; one group (the urban group) was in Jinan, the provincial capital of Shandong Province, and the other (the rural group) was in a farming village in Zhangqiu area some 30 km away from Jinan City. Comparison between the two groups showed that there was no significant (p > 0.10) difference in the prevalence of HBsAg+, anti-HBs+, anti-HBc+ and the cases positive to any of three HBV infection markers (i.e. HBV+). No age-dependent difference was detected within or between the groups. Thus the overall positivity rate was 8% for HBsAg+, 47% for anti-HBs+, 48% for anti-HBc+, and 64% for HBV+. No anti-HCV+ case was found either in the urban group or in the rural group. Liver function remained normal in all cases studied. The results together with perusal of published data suggest the urban-rural difference will not be remarkable, if present, in HBV and HCV infection in the regions studied, and possibly in China as a whole.