Hepatitis B Virus Infection in Iranian Hemodialysis Patients: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in hemodialysis patients and its associated adverse health consequences are a worldwide health priority. This systematic review aimed to provide evidence on HBV infection in Iranian hemodialysis patients.

Through a comprehensive systematic review of literature, which led to meta-analysis of findings, we estimated the pooled prevalence of HBV infection in Iranian hemodialysis patients. The main international electronic data sources were MEDLINE, Institute of Scientific Information, and Scopus. We also search several Persian-language databases. All cross-sectional and analytical studies conducted in Iran concerning HBV infection were included irrespective of date and language.

Of 602 publications retrieved from literature search, 66 met the inclusion criteria, and 36 were eligible for including in the study. The prevalence rate varied from zero to 9.75% across different provinces. The national prevalence of HBV was reported between 2.1% and 18.2%. Significant heterogeneity was found between reported prevalence rates (I2 = 83.5%, P < .001), as a result of which, we used random effect analysis. Results of meta-analysis showed that the estimated pooled prevalence was 4% (95% confidence interval, 3.3% to 4.7%).

To our knowledge, this was the first comprehensive systematic review of HBV infection in the hemodialysis patients of Iran. Results could be useful for informed health policy making and planning further studies in this field.