title: Hepatitis E virus seroprevalence among blood donors in southwest Switzerland.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of Hepatitis E virus (HEV) among blood donors in southwest Switzerland.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  HEV is recognized as a food-borne disease in industrialized countries, transmitted mainly through pork meat. Cases of transmission through blood transfusion have also been reported. Recent studies have revealed seroprevalence rates of 13.5%, 16.6% and 20.6% among blood donors in England, France and Denmark, respectively.
  
  
  METHODS
  We analyzed 550 consecutive blood donor samples collected in the region of Lausanne, canton of Vaud, Switzerland, for the presence of anti-HEV IgG, using the MP Diagnostics HEV ELISA kit. For each donor, we documented age, sex and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) value.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The study panel was composed of 332 men (60.4%) and 218 women (39.6%). Overall, anti-HEV IgG was found in 27 of 550 samples (4.9%). The seroprevalence was 5.4% (18/332) in men and 4.1% (9/218) in women. The presence of anti-HEV IgG was not correlated with age, gender or ALT values. However, we observed a peak in seroprevalence of 5.3% in individuals aged 51 to 70 years old.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Compared with other European countries, HEV seroprevalence among blood donors in southwest Switzerland is low. The low seroprevalence may be explained by the sensitivity of commercial tests used and/or the strict regulation of animal and meat imports. Data regarding HEV prevalence in Swiss livestock are lacking and merit exploration.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Annatina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kaufmann
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kenfak-Foguena
authors.forename: Cyril
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: André
authors.forename: Giorgia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Canellini
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bürgisser
authors.forename: Darius
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Moradpour
authors.forename: Katharine E A
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Darling
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cavassini
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001782:Blood Donors / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D016752:Hepatitis E virus / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D013557:Switzerland / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult