AIMS: The aim of this prospective study was to assess the prevalence of anti-hepatitis C virus antibodies in a population of pregnant women in Réunion. METHODS: Over a 6-month period, all blood samples of pregnant women who delivered at a hospital in the south of Réunion were tested with a third generation enzyme-linked immunoassay. In addition, risk factors for hepatitis C transmission were systematically looked for. RESULTS: Among the 1,455 women tested during this period, only 2 sera were found to be positive, resulting in a prevalence of 0.14%. One of these women had a history of intravenous drug use, whereas the other had no identified risk factor. This low prevalence was found to be associated with a low frequency of risk factors of C virus infection in this population: a history of transfusion and intravenous drug use was found in 2.9% and 0.21% of cases, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of hepatitis C virus infection is particularly low in Réunion. This low prevalence is explained by the rarity of risk factors for hepatitis C transmission in this region which is close to the African continent and has a similar high prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection.
AIMS: The aim of this prospective study was to assess the prevalence of anti-hepatitis C virus antibodies in a population of pregnant women in Réunion. METHODS: Over a 6-month period, all blood samples of pregnant women who delivered at a hospital in the south of Réunion were tested with a third generation enzyme-linked immunoassay. In addition, risk factors for hepatitis C transmission were systematically looked for. RESULTS: Among the 1,455 women tested during this period, only 2 sera were found to be positive, resulting in a prevalence of 0.14%. One of these women had a history of intravenous drug use, whereas the other had no identified risk factor. This low prevalence was found to be associated with a low frequency of risk factors of C virus infection in this population: a history of transfusion and intravenous drug use was found in 2.9% and 0.21% of cases, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of hepatitis C virus infection is particularly low in Réunion. This low prevalence is explained by the rarity of risk factors for hepatitis C transmission in this region which is close to the African continent and has a similar high prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection.