Beta-thalassaemia and the prevalence of HCV viraemia.
Twenty-four serum samples from multitransfused patients with beta-thalassaemia major and fourteen positive control samples, (eight haemodialysis patients and six sporadic cases of HCV infection) were selected as anti-HCV-positives by a second-generation ELISA, a confirmatory test (Abbott), and an immunoblot assay (INNO-LIA HCV AbIII, Omicron Medical). Subsequently, by means of the nested polymerase chain reaction technique (PCR), using the set of PT1-4 primers, the RNA of the virus was detected in a total of 29 samples: 22 out of 24 patients with beta-thalassaemia and 7 out of 14 from the control group were positive for the RNA of the virus. The findings show that there is a statistically significant prevalence [chi2 = 6.344, P < or = 0.02] of HCV viraemia in the population of beta-thalassaemia major in Greece, as compared with the positive control group.
Spiliopoulou
I
I
Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Patras, Greece.
Arvaniti
A
A
Kolonitsiou
F
F
Dimitracopoulos
G
G
Athanassiadou
A
A
D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D006115:Greece / Q000453:epidemiology; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission*; D006801:Humans; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D012698:Serologic Tests; D065227:Transfusion Reaction; D014766:Viremia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission; D017086:beta-Thalassemia / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology*
D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D012367:RNA, Viral