Hepatitis C virus infection in Iceland: a recently introduced bloodborne disease

Autor: B. Stanzeit, A. Löve
Rok vydání: 1994
Předmět:
Zdroj: Epidemiology and Infection. 113:529-536
ISSN: 1469-4409
0950-2688
DOI: 10.1017/s0950268800068540
Popis: SUMMARYThis study demonstrates a very high prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus among Icelandic intravenous (i.v.) drug users. Of 152 identified i.v. drug users 95 (63%) were shown to have antibodies to the hepatitis C virus. In contrast the seroprevalence in the general Icelandic population is low, (0·2%). Almost all cases of hepatitis C virus infection in Iceland are due to i.v. drug use or to use of infected blood or blood products. Sporadic cases with unexplained modes of transmission, a significant portion of hepatitis C infections elsewhere, are virtually non-existent in Iceland. The results of this study are consistent with the hypothesis that the sporadic community-acquired cases could be caused by blood transfer due to bites from insect vectors such as mosquitoes which are not found in Iceland.
Databáze: OpenAIRE