Seroprevalence of HCV infection among Indian patients with hemodialysis

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) exists as the most common hepatotropic disease with a severe complication in significant patients. Maximum incidence of HCV infection occurred specifically in hemodialysis patients and they were related with increased illness and fatality rate. Therefore, it is of interest to know the seroprevalence of HCV infections in hemodialysis patients using anti-HCV and PCR diagnosis. Hence, this study was carried out at a tertiary care hospital for a period of 12 months. 92 blood samples were collected and subjected for the detection of HCV antibodies using ELISA followed by RT-PCR. Out of 92 HD patient samples, 7 were positive for Anti-HCV and 9 samples showed positive for HCV RNA. Thus, ELISA has less sensitivity with false negative rate for identification of HCV infection. Thus, hemodialysis patients should be routinely screened for HCV using RT-PCR for adequate management of the disease.