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Prevalence of hepatitis E viraemia among blood donors: a systematic review
Author(s) -
Goel Amit,
Vijay Halkurike Jayadevappa,
Katiyar Harshita,
Aggarwal Rakesh
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
vox sanguinis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.68
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1423-0410
pISSN - 0042-9007
DOI - 10.1111/vox.12887
Subject(s) - hepatitis e virus , hepatitis e , medicine , virology , genotype , meta analysis , transmission (telecommunications) , blood transfusion , immunology , hepatitis c , biology , biochemistry , gene , electrical engineering , engineering
Background Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is usually transmitted by faecal–oral route. Recent reports have documented HEV viraemia in donated blood units and HEV transmission through blood transfusion. This systematic review summarizes the available data on prevalence of HEV viraemia in blood donors. Methods Electronic databases were searched on 17 December 2018 to identify full‐text English papers reporting original data on prevalence of HEV RNA in donated blood units. Two authors independently extracted the relevant data, which were pooled using simple aggregation as well as a random‐effects meta‐analysis; heterogeneity was assessed using the I 2 method. Results In all, 59 data sets from 28 countries were identified. The available data showed marked heterogeneity. Of a total of 2 127 832 units studied, 561 (263·6 [95% confidence intervals = 242·7–286·4] per million units) tested positive for HEV RNA. On random‐effects meta‐analysis, the pooled prevalence was 60·9 [6·7–155·4] per million units. In the viraemic units, HEV RNA titre varied by nearly one million‐fold, and most had genotype 3 HEV. The prevalence was higher in blood units with anti‐HEV antibodies or elevated alanine aminotransferase. Only nearly one‐fourth of viraemic units had anti‐HEV antibodies. Conclusions The prevalence of HEV viraemia among healthy blood donors is low, though the available data had limited geographical representation and marked heterogeneity. There is a need for further data on HEV viraemia in blood donors from areas with non‐3 HEV genotype preponderance.