title: Prevalence of "anti-HBc alone" among Syrian blood donors.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of "anti-HBc alone" among Syrian blood donors, highlighting the possibility of representing occult HBV infection.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sera of 3,896 healthy blood donors were tested for both HBsAg and anti-HBc. HBsAg-negative, anti-HBc-positive samples were further tested for the antibodies to HBsAg (anti-HBs), and "anti-HBc alone" sera were tested for HBV DNA.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 3,830 HBsAg-negative donors, 63 were "anti-HBc alone" donors, five of whom were HBV DNA positive.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Greater consideration should be given to the "anti-HBc alone" serological profile in blood screening, premarital testing, organ transplantation tests, and other HBV transmission-related procedures in Syria.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmacy, Damascus University, Damascus, Syria.. wael.muselmani@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Wael
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Muselmani
authors.forename: Wafa
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Habbal
authors.forename: Fawza
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Monem
mesh_terms: D001782:Blood Donors; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000097:blood*; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013593:Syria / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens