HBV and HCV infection among non-European Union immigrants in North-East Italy
Epidemiology and InfectionPublished 1 August 1998Open access
M. Chiaramonte, Arlenys Carbonell Pupo, T. Menegon, Vincenzo Baldo, Roy Rodriguez Malatesta, R. Trivello
Citations23
SJR quartileQ2
SJR score0.72
SNIP0.65
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TL;DR
The large number of HBV carriers among immigrants could increase the number of new adult infections due to life-style habits or professional risks in the host population, and the risk of HCV spread from non-EU immigrants is very low.
Abstract
The status of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among non-European Union (non-EU) immigrants in North-East Italy was evaluated. Among the 1683 individuals tested the prevalence of HBsAg was 8.9% (150 subjects) and of HBV antibodies (anti-HBc with/without anti-HBs) was 38.9% (654 subjects). The distribution of HBV serological markers showed significant differences according to region of origin; the highest prevalence of infection (76.9%) and carriage (16.1%) was found in immigrants from sub-Saharan Africa. Among the 933 individuals screened for HCV infection, prevalence of antibody was much lower (0.9%) than that observed in the Italian general population (3.2-12.6%). The large number of HBV carriers among immigrants could increase the number of new adult infections due to life-style habits or professional risks in the host population. In contrast, the risk of HCV spread from non-EU immigrants is very low.
Keywords
Medicine
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