Seroprevalence of hepatitis B and C viruses in the province of Tokat in the Black Sea region of Turkey: A population-based study.

Background/aims: Viral hepatitides are considered a major health problem worldwide. There are only a few studies relevant to the epidemiology of these types of infection in the normal healthy population. In this study, we aimed to determine the seroprevalence of hepatitis B and hepatitis C as well as the frequency of isolated anti-HBc IgG positivity among a normal healthy population in a northern province of Turkey.

Methods: This study was conducted in 70 areas (12 urban and 58 rural) in the province of Tokat, which is in the Black Sea region of Turkey, with about 530,000 inhabitants 18 years and older. All urban regions and some rural regions selected by a cluster sampling method were included in the study. The study population of 1,095 subjects (541 male and 554 female; urban 555 and rural 540) was selected by a random sampling method among 530,000 individuals. All individuals were tested for HBsAg, anti- HBs, anti-HBc IgG, anti-HCV, and alanine aminotransferase.

Results: The mean age of all participants was 41.4+/-17 years (range, 18-95). HBsAg, anti-HBs, anti-HBc IgG only, isole and anti-HCV were detected in 60 (5.5%), 250 (22.8%), 132 (12.1%), and 23 (2.1%) individuals of the 1,095 total participants, respectively. We did not find statistically significant differences between hepatitis B and C markers for men versus women or those living in rural versus urban areas. The rate of HBsAg positivity in individuals with a history of marriage to close relatives was higher.

Conclusions: We found that the seroprevalences of hepatitis B and C in a northern province of Turkey are similar to the averages reported in other studies that were conducted in a different region of our country. The history of marriage to close relatives was associated with hepatitis B.