title: Prevalence of active HCV infection among the blood donors of Khyber Pakhtunkwa and FATA region of Pakistan and evaluation of the screening tests for anti-HCV.
abstract: Hepatitis C is a fatal liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus. In this study, blood donors, from various districts of the KPK province and the federally administered tribal area (FATA) of Pakistan were tested for anti-HCV antibodies and HCV RNA by ICT (Immuno-chromatographic test), ELISA and RT-PCR. Out of the 7148 blood donors, 224 (3.13%) were positive for anti-HCV antibodies by ICT, 135 (1.89%) by ELISA while 118 (1.65%) blood donors had active HCV infection as detected by RT-PCR. We suggest that ELISA should be used for anti-HCV screening in public sector hospitals and health care units.
authors: Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, KPK Agricultural University, Peshawar, Pakistan.
authors: Najib U
authors: NU
authors: Khan
authors: Ijaz
authors: I
authors: Ali
authors: Naeem U
authors: NU
authors: Ahmad
authors: Aqib
authors: A
authors: Iqbal
authors: Latif U
authors: LU
authors: Rehman
authors: Iqbal
authors: I
authors: Munir
authors: Muti U
authors: MU
authors: Rehman
authors: Sanaullah
authors: S
authors: Khan
authors: Sajid
authors: S
authors: Ali
authors: Lubna
authors: L
authors: Siddique
authors: Zahoor A
authors: ZA
authors: Swati
mesh_terms: D001782:Blood Donors / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology*; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D010154:Pakistan / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence
chemical_list: D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies