Seroprevalence of Antibodies to Hepatitis E Virus Among Pregnant Women

Background: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is a major public health problem in developing countries, which could progress to an acute self-limited hepatitis. Young adults and middle-aged people are more likely to be infected than children and elderly persons. The disease is usually mild in general population; severe infection is more seen among pregnant women and leads to a high rate of mortality in this population. Objectives: This study aimed to assess seroprevalence of HEV infection and related risk factors among pregnant women referred to Fatemieh Hospital in Hamadan, Iran. Patients and Methods: A total of ۱۰۵۰ pregnant women were included in this prospective cross-sectional study, conducted from ۲۰۱۰ to ۲۰۱۱. Anti-HEV specific IgG was measured with ELISA method. A questionnaire containing research purposes was also fulfilled for each participant. Results: The mean age of pregnant women was ۲۷.۲ ± ۵.۶ years. The overall seroprevalence of anti-HEV was ۷.۴%. There was a significant association between anti-HEV seropositivity and age (P < ۰.۰۰۱), degree of education (P = ۰.۰۱۷), number of household members (P = ۰.۰۰۲), siblings (P = ۰.۰۰۵), and parities (P = ۰.۰۰۷). However, no significant relationship was observed between positive anti-HEV and variables such as place of residence, occupation, history of animal contacts, agricultural activities, type of drinking water, and the method of washing vegetables (P > ۰.۰۵). Conclusions: According to the results, ۹۲.۶% of pregnant women were anti-HEV negative. However, there is no available effective vaccine for its prevention in human yet. Therefore, education about environmental and personal hygiene before and during pregnancy may be helpful for decreasing the rate of HEV infection in this high risk population.