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Hepatitis B Virus Subtypes ad and ay Among Blood Donors in the Greater Los Angeles Area
Author(s) -
Mosley J. W.,
Edwards V. M.,
Wapplehorst B.,
Hajduk P.
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
transfusion
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.045
H-Index - 132
eISSN - 1537-2995
pISSN - 0041-1132
DOI - 10.1111/j.1537-2995.1974.tb04547.x
Subject(s) - medicine , turnover , hepatitis b , blood bank , hepatitis b virus , demography , immunology , virus , emergency medicine , management , sociology , economics
In late 1971 and 1972, one voluntary and three commercial blood banks in the Los Angeles area provided specimens from hepatitis B antigen‐positive donors. These were characterized as ad or ay subtypes of hepatitis B virus. Of 202 voluntary donors, 81 per cent had subtype ad and 19 per cent subtype ay , Of 129 paid donors, 66 per cent had subtype ad and 34 per cent had subtype ay , with one commercial bank accounting entirely for the statistically significant overall difference. Analysis by sex, race, and age of donors indicated only age to be a factor in this series. Voluntary donors less than 25 years of age had a higher frequency (30%) of ay strains than did voluntary donors 25 and over (15%). Paid donors under 25 had an even higher frequency (58%) and differed significantly from the voluntary donors under 25. Paid donors 25 and over (of whom 20% had ay strains), however, did not differ significantly from unpaid donors 25 and over (15%). These findings could indicate that illicit self‐injection was the immediate background causing a high frequency of subtype ay among young donors, paid and voluntary. Review of available information, however, suggests that the disproportion may be an indirect rather than a direct consequence of epidemic drug abuse.