Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Infection among Seronegative Patients undergoing Haemodialysis in a Remotely Located Tertiary Care Hospital of Northern India: Value of HCV-RNA and Genotypes
DC10-DC12
Correspondence
Dr. Pragati Grover,
Pragati Grover, Kothi No-203, Street No.2, Guru Nanak Colony, Faridkot-151203, Punjab, India.
E-mail : pragatigrover79@gmail.com
Background: Haemodialysis (HD) patients are at an increased risk of Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, which is significantly associated with increased morbidity and mortality.
Aim: The aim of this study was to find the prevalence of HCV infection in anti-HCV antibody negative haemodialysis patients by Real-time PCR (RT-PCR) and value of HCV-RNA among seronegative patients undergoing haemodialysis in a remotely located tertiary care hospital.
Materials and Methods: A total of 100 chronic renal failure patients on haemodialysis were studied. All the patients were screened for anti-HCV antibodies by ELISA test and for HCV-RNA by RT-PCR.
Results: The overall prevalence of HCV infection was 32%. Antibody positivity was 30% and HCV-RNA by RT-PCR was detected in 20%. HCV-RNA in seronegative patients was detected in 2.8%.
Conclusion: Serological assays (30%) are quite reliable for detecting HCV infection in patients undergoing haemodialysis in our tertiary care hospital. Only a small proportion of them (2.8%) require the documentation of viral genome for current infection.