title: Serological pattern of Hepatitis B, C, and HIV infections among immigrants in Sicily: epidemiological aspects and implication on public health.
abstract: The objective of this study was to describe the prevalence of Hepatitis B virus (HBV), Hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections in a cohort of immigrants living in Palermo, Sicily. The study was carried out in the period May 2006-June 2010 and recruited a total of 393 patients (59.8% males-median age of 32.6 years). All patients were tested for serological markers of HBV, HCV, and HIV infection. One-hundred thirty-eight (35.1%) individuals did not show any HBV/HCV/HIV serological marker, while 186 (47.3%) were indicative of past or current HBV infection. A total of 42 (10.7%) subjects were HBsAg positive, 59 (15.0%) showed the serological profile "anti-HBc alone", and only 40 (10.1%) were anti-HBs alone. Overall, 22/393 (5.6%) immigrants were anti-HCV positive and 13/327 (4.0%) were infected with HIV. Findings from this study suggest that a suitable screening protocol for the viral blood/sexually transmissible diseases is recommended on entering Italy, and the adoption of health control strategies should also be considered to safeguard the health of the local population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Sciences for the Health Promotion "G. D'Alessandro"-Hygiene Section, University of Palermo, 133, via del Vespro, 90127, Palermo, Italy. fabio.tramuto@unipa.it
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tramuto
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Mazzucco
authors.forename: Carmelo Massimo
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Maida
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Affronti
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Affronti
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Montalto
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vitale
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D015488:HIV Antigens / Q000097:blood; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology; D018936:Hepatitis C Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D011634:Public Health; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012802:Sicily / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D015488:HIV Antigens; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D018936:Hepatitis C Antigens