PREVALENCE OF INFECTION WITH HIV, HEPATITIS-B AND HEPATITIS-C VIRUSES, IN 4 HIGH-RISK GROUPS IN ERITREA

Background: Little is known about the prevalence of infections in diff erent population groups in Africa, and about the influence of living c onditions on the spread of infections. This study is the first of its kind in the state of Eritrea and is expected to serve as an evaluation of the situation in the country. Objective: A serosurvey for human im munodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C vi rus (HCV) was carried out during the summer of 1995 in Massawa, a smal l sea port in Eritrea (East Africa) in four groups considered to be at risk for these infections. Study design: The study subjects were form er Guerrilla Fighters, Female Sex Workers, Truck Drivers, and Port Wor kers. Participants from a tribe called Rashaida were believed to be at low risk, and thus served as a control. Results: The Female Sex Worke rs had the highest incidence of HIV-1 infection, 29%, compared to 10% for Port Workers, and 3% for Guerrilla Fighters. On the other hand pre sence of HBsAg, indicating a high prevalence of hepatitis B carrier st atus, was highest in the Guerrilla Fighters, followed by the Rashaidas , and lowest in the Female Sex Workers. The Female Sex Workers were fu rther tested for antibodies against HBV and the results revealed that 53% of them, 5%, had antibodies against HBcoreAg. Excluding the possib ility of an acute infection at sampling time, three of them became HBs Ag carriers. Surprisingly, our group of Truck Drivers did not show HIV -1 infection, and no HIV-2 infections were seen in the whole cohort. C onclusion: The study shows that the described groups have different pr evalences of infection with HIV, hepatitis B and C which can partly be explained by their living conditions. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.