ISSN 2756-3413
African Journal of Virology Research ISSN 3421-7347 Vol. 13 (7), pp. 001-003, July, 2019. © International Scholars Journals
Short Communication
Sero-prevalence of hepatitis C virus among blood donors in Lagos, Nigeria
Ayolabi, C. I.1*, Taiwo, M. A.1, Omilabu, S. A.2, Abebisi, A. O.1 and Fatoba, O. M.1
1Department of Botany and Microbiology, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.
2Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.
Accepted 11 April, 2019
abstract
The prevalence of Hepatitis C virus (HCV), one of the causative agents of viral hepatitis was investiga-ted. One hundred and sixty-seven (167) blood samples from donors which were sero-negative to hepatitis B virus markers were screened for presence of HCV IgM antibodies using a third generation ELISA kit. Out of the 167 sample tested 14 (8.4%) were positive for anti-HCV with the highest prevalence rate recorded in the age group 30-39 years. There is no statistically significant association between the sex and the rate of HCV infection (p 0.05).
Key words: Hepatitis, prevalence, blood transfusion.