Screening of Occult Hepatitis B and C Virus Infection in Working Children, Tehran, Iran

AuthorArezoo Marjanien
AuthorSaba Garshasbien
AuthorKhadijeh Khanalihaen
AuthorRoya Kahyesh-Esfandiaryen
AuthorFarzaneh Dehghani-Dehejen
AuthorRoghayeh Babaeien
AuthorMohsen Sadeghien
AuthorHossein Keyvanien
AuthorMaryam Esghaeien
AuthorAtousa Fakhimen
AuthorFarah Bokharaei-Salimen
OrcidSaba Garshasbi [0000-0001-7564-7309]en
OrcidKhadijeh Khanaliha [0000-0003-3264-8496]en
OrcidFarzaneh Dehghani-Dehej [0000-0002-8440-7996]en
OrcidRoghayeh Babaei [0000-0002-6203-8640]en
OrcidMohsen Sadeghi [0000-0002-9180-333X]en
OrcidMaryam Esghaei [0000-0003-2944-2147]en
OrcidFarah Bokharaei-Salim [0000-0002-5367-0847]en
Issued Date2022-10-31en
AbstractBackground: Working children are susceptible to infection with various infectious microorganisms. Unfortunately, the difficulties of working children are growing at a remarkable speed worldwide. Objectives: The aim of this research was to determine the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, as well as to evaluate the level of anemia, calcium, and phosphorus in working children. Methods: This cross-sectional research was performed on 370 Iranian and Afghan working children from February 2018 to May 2019. Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), hepatitis B surface antibody (HBsAb), hepatitis B core antibody (HBcAb), and anti-HCV Ab were evaluated using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Furthermore, HCV-RNA and genomic HBV-DNA in the plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) specimens of the participants were investigated. The restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) method was used to determine the genotype of HCV, and sequencing was performed to confirm. Results: The mean age of the participants was 10.1 ± 2.1 years (range, 6 - 15 years), and 229 (61.9%) were male. None of the studied children had any detectable HBV-DNA in the plasma and PBMC. The HCV genome was not detected in the plasma of the children, but HCV-RNA was assessed in the PBMC sample of 1 child (0.3%). Therefore, one of the children had occult HCV infection (OCI). The genotype of HCV in this child was subtype 1a. Furthermore, HBsAb was detected in Iranian (41.5%) and Afghan children (40.0%), and 2 (0.54%) of the working children were HBsAg positive. In 3 participants (0.8%), a positive HBcAb test result was noted. Conclusions: The prevalence of HCV and HBV infection in working children in Iran is extremely rare. However, there is a possibility of the presence of OCI in these children.en
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.5812/pedinfect-118763en
KeywordHepatitis B Virusen
KeywordHepatitis C Virusen
KeywordWorking Childrenen
KeywordTehranen
KeywordIranen
PublisherBrieflandsen
TitleScreening of Occult Hepatitis B and C Virus Infection in Working Children, Tehran, Iranen
TypeResearch Articleen

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