Frequencies of hepatitis B, delta and HTLV‐III virus markers in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Serum samples from 608 residents of Saudi Arabia were examined for the presence of hepatitis B, delta and HTLV-III virus markers. The HBsAg carrier rate was 17% and the prevalence of all hepatitis B virus markers was 55%. Males between 16 and 25 years had a significantly higher prevalence of all HBV markers (69%; 95% confidence limits: 49%-82%) compared to females in the same age group (34%; 95% confidence limits: 25%-45%). The prevalence of HBsAg was significantly higher among males aged 25-35 years (24%; 95% confidence limits: 19%-40%) compared to females in the same age group (9%; 95% confidence limits: 4%-18%). In addition, the HBsAg carrier rate for all males (23%) was significantly higher compared to females (11%) (p less than 0.001). HBeAg was found in 12% of 89 HBsAg-positive individuals, 48% were anti-HBe positive and 40% were negative for both markers. Hepatitis B virus DNA was found in 11 of 41 individuals tested. Five of these were HBeAg positive and four were anti-HBe positive. Anti-delta was found in three of 36 HBsAg positive serum samples (8%). Of 485 individuals tested for anti-HTLV-III, none were positive.