PREVALENCE OF ANTIBODIES TO HEPATITIS-C VIRUS AMONG OMANI PATIENTS WITH RENAL-DISEASE

The prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in Omani patients with renal disease was determined using a second-generation enzyme imm unoassay which detects antibodies to three HCV antigens. Based on the results of this assay, 27 of 102 (26.5%) sera from patients on haemodi alysis, 11 of 82 (13.4%) sera from kidney transplant patients, and 1 o f 103 (1%) sera from non-dialysed, non-transplanted patients with vari ous renal diseases had antibodies to HCV. Among healthy subjects, none of 134 medical students and 5 of 564 (0.9%) blood donors were anti-HC V positive. Thus, the prevalence of HCV infection in dialysis and rena l transplant patients was significantly higher than that found in pati ents with renal disease who had been neither dialysed nor transplanted (p < 0.05). In the latter group of patients, the frequency of anti-HC V was low, and comparable to that of healthy Omani subjects.