Frequency of Hepatitis B and C among pregnant women in Khartoum State

Abstract

The present study aimed to determine the frequency of hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus and their risk factors among pregnant women at Khartoum State, Sudan. The study was performed during the period from June to August 2012. Ninety pregnant women were enrolled. The majority of the candidates 82 (91.1%) were house wives, 50 (55.6%) on their 3rd trimester of pregnancy, 82 (91.1%) were not vaccinated against HBV, 35 (38.9%) had previously aborted while most of study population 56 (62.2%) were not aware about hepatitis infection. Blood samples collected from participants were subjected to measure liver enzymes and tested for presence of HBV and HCV antigens using ELISA technique. 1(1.1%) of the pregnant women was sero-positive for HBsAg, while HCV was not detected. There was insignificant statistical relation between HBsAg and their risk factors such as age, geographical area, education level, occupation, gestational age, previous parity ,gravidity, awareness of HBV and HCV, while the results showed statistical significant relation between liver enzymes and sero-positive hepatitis (B) infection.