ARE GENDER-SPECIFIC ALT CUTOFF VALUES NECESSARY

We examined the importance of using gender-specific alanine aminotrans ferase (ALT) cutoff values for screening blood donors for hepatitis C. Currently, a single cutoff value is recommended, regardless of donor gender. This study of 1,426 healthy blood donors demonstrated that ALT levels appear to be gender dependent; males have higher ALT levels th an females. Differences in ALT levels between males and females are no t explained adequately by hepatitis B or C infection. Use of gender-sp ecific ALT cutoff values might result in a greater detection of infect ious units among female donors, which in turn might lead to fewer tran sfusion-related hepatitis C infections. We recommend that only ALT dat a from donors who test negative for anti-hepatitis C virus anti-hepati tis B surface antigen, and anti-hepatitis B core antigen should be use d to determine ALT cutoff levels.