ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a major public health concern in developing countries. HEV transmission occurs primarily by the fecal-oral route. It has also been reported that blood donors are potentially able to cause transfusion-associated hepatitis E in endemic areas. This study aimed to determine the seroprevalence of HEV infection among volunteer blood donors in Central province of Iran in 2012. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 530 consecutive blood donor samples collected from Blood Transfusion Organization, Central Province of Iran. All samples were tested for the presence of IgG Hepatitis E antibody (anti-HEV) using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: From 530 blood donors, 91.9% were male and 8.1% were female. Overall, anti-HEV was found in 76 of 530 samples (14.3%). There was no significant difference in HEV seropositivity between the subjects regarding gender and area of residence (urban vs. rural). Anti-HEV was distributed among all age groups. Although people aged 31-50 years had the highest prevalence, but there was no statistical difference between the age groups. CONCLUSION: This study shows a relatively high prevalence of anti-HEV in the blood donors of Central province of Iran. More investigations are needed to assess the potential benefit of adding HEV screening of blood products to the current blood donor selection criteria.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Phantom limb pain (PLP) is approximately a common condition after limb amputation, which potentially affects the quality of life. We aimed to evaluate anxiety and depression in patients with amputated limbs suffering from PLP and to compare these psychological dysfunctions with that of patients with non-phantom chronic pain. METHODS: A total number of 16 male amputees with PLP and 24 male age-matched patients with non-phantom chronic pain were recruited in this study, which was performed at Khatam-Al-Anbia Pain Clinic, Tehran, Iran. A validated Persian version of the hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) was used to compare two psychological dysfunctions - anxiety and depression - between the two groups of study. RESULTS: The mean of total anxiety score was significantly lower in patients with PLP (8.00 ± 3.93 vs. 11.25 ± 5.23; P = 0.041) and the prevalence of anxiety caseness (HADS-A score ≥ 11) was also lower in the PLP group (25% vs. 58.3%; P = 0.112, power = 31.7%). The mean of total depression score was 7.69 ± 5.51 and 9.38 ± 6.11 in patients of PLP and chronic pain groups, respectively (P = 0.340, power = 15%). Consequently, the prevalence of depression caseness (HADS-D score ≥ 11) was lower in PLP patients (37.5% vs. 50%; P = 0.710, power = 8%). CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that depression and anxiety are not more common in PLP patients, whereas they are more prevalent in subjects with non-phantom chronic pain. These lower levels of anxiety and depression in PLP compared with chronic pain is a new finding that needs to be evaluated further, which may lead to new insights into the pathogenesis of phantom pain in further studies.