Prevalence of type C and B hepatitis in blood donors at a third level hospital of Mexico City

Objective. To investigate the prevalence of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and B virus (HBV) in blood donors attending Medica Sur Hospital. Material and methods. A total of 9 099 blood donors were tested for hepatitis B and C vi ruses from 1994 to 1998. A questionnaire was used to collect data and HCV a nd HBV were detected in serum. We obtained percentages and assessed statist ical significance using the chi(2) test. Results, The prevalence of HCV and HBV carriers was 0.47 and 0.11 per cent. The main risk factors were dental procedures (11.6% for HCV and 20%, for HBV), and unsafe sexual practices ( 20%) for HBV. Conclusions. These results indicate a low prevalence of HCV a nd HBV infection in this population.