Abstract

Background: Viral hepatitis is an important worldwide health problem. Patients undergoing any surgical procedure may have this infection, requiring special precautions so that they cannot transmit it to others.
Objectives: To determine the seroprevalence of viral hepatitis B and C in pre-surgical patients.
Subjects and methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on adult presurgical patients admitted to Basrah General Hospital for elective surgery. Convenience sampling was used to enroll the participants aged 18 years and above. Demographic and medical information were collected. Blood samples were examined by ELISA for HBsAg and HCV antibodies.
Results: Out of 254 pre-operative patients (mean age 45.7±16.8 years), 63% of them were males), and 15 (5.9%) were HBsAg seropositive while 7 (2.8%) were Anti-HCV seropositive. None was concurrently positive for both hepatitis B and C. The overall sero-prevalence of either hepatitis B or C was 8.7%. In multivariate analysis, the significant risk factors for viral hepatitis seropositivity were; history of dental surgical intervention (OR, 12.84; 95% CI, 1.60-24.69; P=0.018), number of blood transfusion (OR, 2.39; 95% CI, 1.07-4.96; P=0.033), and tattooing (OR, 4.59; 95% CI, 1.09-7.33; P=0.037).
Conclusion: The seroprevalence of viral hepatitis B and C in presurgical patients in Basrah was high. Routine screening of presurgical patients is recommended to prevent spread of the disease.
Key words: Basrah, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Pre-surgical, Seroprevalence