EXPOSURE TO HEPATITIS-B AND HEPATITIS-C OF TATTOOISTS IN VICTORIA IN 1984

Although tattooing is recognized as a risk factor for transmission of hepatitis C, the efficiency with which transmission occurs is unknown, Sera stored from a serosurvey of tattooists undertaken in 1984 to tes t for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) provided the opportunity to d etermine the prevalence of serological markers of hepatitis B virus (H BV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) in tattooists at that time, The stored sera had been obtained from five unregistered and 36 of 37 (97%) of t he registered tattooists operating in 1984, Serological status for hep atitis B (hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), antibody to hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAb) and antibody to hepatitis B core antigen (HBc Ab) in standard assays) or hepatitis C (HCV antibody reactivity in sec ond and third generation tests, confirmed by recombinant immunoblot as say) was determined, No sera was HIV positive or HBsAg positive, Of 35 specimens tested for HCV specific antibody, only two (5.6%) were posi tive despite markers of HBV in 48.6% of the same sera, As acute HBV in fection was common amongst tattooists prior to 1984, it is clear that hepatitis B vaccination would be of benefit to this group, Despite fre quent needlestick injuries reported by tattooists at the time, the low seroprevalence of HCV in this group suggests that HCV may not be tran smitted efficiently by intradermal inoculation using solid-bore tattoo ing needles.