title: Seroprevalence of hepatitis B and hepatitis C among rural emergency medical care personnel.
abstract: To identify the prevalence of serologic markers of hepatitis B and hepatitis C among rural prehospital providers, a prospective descriptive study was conducted of a rural county emergency medical services (EMS) system. Participants included 107 prehospital care providers: 102 EMT-Bs, 1 paramedic, and 4 law enforcement first responders. Blood samples taken from prehospital care providers were tested for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), antibody to HBsAg (HBsAb), antibody to hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAb), and antibody to hepatitis C (anti-HC). The 107 providers had a total of 635 years of EMS experience (5.93 years per subject). Three providers (3%) had received previous blood transfusions, 7 (7%) had worked in a metropolitan area, and 6 (6%) had multiple sexual partners prior to the study. No provider reported intravenous drug use or known homosexual or bisexual contact. Only one sample tested positive for hepatitis C antibody (anti-HC) and hepatitis surface antibody (HBsAb). Rural prehospital care personnel have a low prevalence (0.9%) of exposure to hepatitis B and hepatitis C. Despite this fact, continued vigilance should be maintained in preventing transmission of bloodborne illnesses.
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus 43210-1228, USA.
authors.forename: H A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Werman
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gwinn
mesh_terms: D004632:Emergency Medical Services; D004634:Emergency Medical Technicians; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D009820:Ohio / Q000453:epidemiology; D016495:Police; D015995:Prevalence; D012309:Risk-Taking; D019035:Rural Health Services; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D000078329:Workforce