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Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction-Based Detection and Quantification of Hepatitis B Virus DNA
Published on: December 15, 2023
Prevalence of Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HTLV-1 Using an Expanded Testing Panel Among Pregnant Women in Two Cities
Juan Pablo Rojas-Hernández1, Mónica Alexandra Gil-Artunduaga2, Nathalia Cortés2
1Universidad del Valle.
Insights
High susceptibility to Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection was found in pregnant women in Colombia. Public health policies should address HBV vaccination status and prenatal care to improve outcomes for Hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HTLV-1 as well.
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Public Health
- Virology
Background:
- Prenatal screening for infectious diseases is crucial for maternal and infant health.
- Hepatitis B virus (HBV), Hepatitis C virus (HCV), and Human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) pose significant health risks.
- Understanding the prevalence of these infections in pregnant populations informs public health strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To estimate the prevalence of HBV, HCV, and HTLV-1 infections using an expanded panel in pregnant women in Colombia.
- To describe the serological classification for HBV using a triple panel.
- To provide data for public health policy development regarding prenatal care and vaccination.
Main Methods:
- A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in Cali and Buenaventura, Colombia.
- 305 pregnant women were included, undergoing screening with an expanded panel for HBV, HCV, and HTLV-1.
- Serological analysis included HBV surface antigen, antibodies, HCV antibodies with viral RNA confirmation, and HTLV-1 antibodies with Western Blot confirmation.
Main Results:
- The prevalence of HTLV-1 was 1.6%, active HCV infection was 0.7%, acute HBV infection was 0.3%, and reactivated chronic HBV was 0.7%.
- A significant proportion (70.25%) of women were susceptible to HBV infection.
- Only 27.5% had immunity from vaccination, and 1.3% had resolved infections.
Conclusions:
- High susceptibility to HBV infection highlights a need for public health interventions focusing on vaccination status review and prenatal vaccination.
- Further implementation studies are needed to assess the feasibility, acceptability, cost-effectiveness, and clinical impact of expanded panels for HBV, HCV, and HTLV-1 in prenatal care.
Objective:
To estimate the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) infection using an expanded panel among pregnant women in two Colombian cities, 2024-2025.
Material And Methods:
A descriptive crosssectional study was conducted among pregnant women attending three primary care institutions in Cali and Buenaventura. Participants were selected through consecutive sampling. A total of 320 women were assessed for eligibility; 305 provided informed consent, completed a structured questionnaire, had complete samples, and were included in the final analysis. The panel included hepatitis B surface antigen, antibodies against hepatitis B surface antigen and total core antigen, antibodies against HCV with confirmation by viral RNA, and antibodies against HTLV-1 with confirmation by Western blot. A descriptive analysis was performed, and period prevalence estimates were calculated.
Results:
The median age was 26 years, and the median gestational age was 22 weeks. Five cases of HTLV-1 infection (1.6 %) and two cases of active HCV infection (0.7 %) were confirmed. For HBV, 214 women were susceptible (70.2 %), 84 had vaccine-induced immunity (27.5 %), 4 had resolved infection (1.3 %), 2 had reactivated chronic infection (0.7 %), and 1 had acute infection (0.3 %).
Conclusion:
The expanded panel allowed estimation of the prevalence of HBV, HCV, and HTLV-1. The high susceptibility to HBV highlights the need to strengthen vaccination status assessment and hepatitis B vaccination during prenatal care.
