Hepatitis B and hepatitis C virus infections among antiretroviral-naive and -experienced HIV co-infected adults.

Most HIV positive people have not been tested for viral hepatitis and their treatments have not been optimized for possible co-infections. The aim of this study was to investigate the serological pattern of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections among antiretroviral (ARV)-naive and -experienced HIV co-infected adults in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A total of 500 frozen HIV positive serum and plasma samples collected from ARV-naive (n = 250) and -experienced (n = 250) adults were randomly selected and screened for HBsAg, anti-HBs, HBeAg and anti-HCV using rapid two-site sandwich immunochromatographic assay. The test was performed at Aklilu Lemma Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University. Positive specimens for HBsAg and anti-HCV markers were further confirmed using third generation ELISA. Of the 500 specimens tested, 15 (3 %), 58 (11.6 %), 3 (0.6 %), 18 (3.6 %), 3 (0.6 %) and 1 (0.2 %) were positive for HBsAg, anti-HBs, HBeAg, anti-HCV, HBsAg and HBeAg, and HBsAg and anti-HBs markers, respectively. No specimen tested positive for both HBeAg and anti-HBs, and 442 (88.4 %) individuals were non-immune to HBV. Of the 250 ARV-naive individuals, 8 (3.2 %), 33 (13.2 %), 2 (0.8 %), 10 (4 %), 2 (0.8 %), and 1 (0.4 %) were positive for HBsAg, anti-HBs, HBeAg, anti-HCV, HBsAg and HBeAg, and HBsAg and anti-HBs markers, respectively. Of the 250 ARV-experienced individuals, 7 (2.8 %), 25 (10 %), 1 (0.4 %), 8 (3.2 %), 1 (0.4 %), and 0 (0 %) were positive for HBsAg, Anti-HBs, HBeAg, anti-HCV, HBsAg and HBeAg, and HBsAg and anti-HBs markers, respectively. In summary, seroprevalence of HIV/HBV and HIV/HCV co-infections was lower in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, than in Sub-Saharan Africa and globally. HBV and HCV infections were not significantly different between HIV positive subjects who were or who were not on ARV. This suggests that the two groups have equal chance of being infected with these two viruses; despite this, disease progression could be different.