title: Seroepidemiology of TT virus, GBC-C/HGV, and hepatitis viruses B, C, and E among women in a rural area of Tanzania.
abstract: The seroprevalence and determinants of hepatitis B, C, and E virus infection, and of GBV-C/hepatitis G virus and TT virus infection were investigated among women from a rural area of northeastern Tanzania. High seroprevalence rates were found for TTV (74%), HBV (74%), and GBV-C/HGV (35%), whereas 7% of the women had evidence of HCV and HEV infection. The majority of TTV DNA sequences in the study population belonged to the genotypes 1 or 2. One sequence seems to represent a new subtype of genotype 4. The GBV-C/HGV sequences either belonged to the genomic Group 1b or to the recently described Group 4. In multivariate analysis, the detection of TTV DNA was associated significantly with a larger number of children in the household and with older age. A history of injections of contraceptive hormones was an independent risk factor for HCV infection. The findings on TTV are consistent with fecal-oral transmission, and recurrent infections may occur in adults.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Tropical Medicine, Charité, Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany. klaus.stark@charite.de
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Stark
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Poggensee
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Höhne
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Bienzle
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kiwelu
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Schreier
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D018136:Circoviridae / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics; D018173:Circoviridae Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D005260:Female; D018067:Flaviviridae / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D016751:Hepatitis E / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D016752:Hepatitis E virus / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D012424:Rural Population; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D013636:Tanzania / Q000453:epidemiology