Hepatitis C Virus in North Africa: An Emerging Threat.
Hepatitis C virus is a major public health threat associated with serious clinical consequences worldwide. North Africa is a unique region composed of seven countries that vary considerably in the predisposing factors to microbial diseases both historically and at the present time. The dynamics of HCV in the region are not well documented. The data are both limited and controversial in most of the countries in the region. In North Africa, the epidemiology of HCV is disparate and understanding it has been hampered by regional "epidemiological homogeneity" concepts. As the dynamics of HCV vary from country to country, context-specific research is needed. In this review, we assess studies performed in each country in the general populations as well as among blood donors and groups exposed to the HCV infection. The reported prevalence of HCV ranges from 0.6% to 8.4% in the Maghreb countries and is predominated by genotype 1. In the Nile valley region, it ranges from 2.2% to 18.9% and is dominated by genotype 4. In North African countries, HCV seems to be a serious problem that is driven by different vectors even in different geographical locations within the same country. Efforts should be combined at both the national and regional levels to implement efficient preventive and treatment strategies.
Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Tripoli University, P.O. Box 82668, Tripoli, Libya.
Mohamed A
0000-0003-1312-5956
MA
Daw
Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Biotechnology, Tripoli University, P.O. Box 82668, Tripoli, Libya.
Abdallah
A
El-Bouzedi
Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Tripoli University, P.O. Box 13662, Tripoli, Libya.
Mohamed O
0000-0001-7542-886X
MO
Ahmed
Department of Surgery, Tripoli Medical Centre, Faculty of Medicine, Tripoli University, P.O. Box 82668, Tripoli, Libya.
Aghnyia A
AA
Dau
Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medical Technology, Algabal Algarbi University, P.O. Box 3321, Nalut, Libya.
Mohamed M
MM
Agnan
D000352:Africa, Northern / Q000453:epidemiology; D005838:Genotype; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D015995:Prevalence