Serological markers of hepatitis B and C in patients with HIV/AIDS and active tuberculosis

Abstract

Infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) and C virus (HCV) are common in patients with HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB). This is a cross-sectional study with patients infected with HIV/AIDS and active TB in Recife, Brazil, aiming to verify the prevalence of markers for HBV: antibody to hepatitis B core antigen (anti-HBc); and HCV: antibody to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) by chemiluminescence, and to identify the frequency of associated factors. Data were collected through questionnaires, and blood was drawn from patients for analysis. We used the chi-square test and the Fisher exact test when necessary. We conducted a bivariate logistic regression analysis and the magnitude of the associations was expressed as odds ratio (OR) with a confidence interval of 95%. Among 166 patients studied with HIV/AIDS and active TB, anti-HBc was positive in 61 patients [36.7%; 95%CI (29.4-44.6%)] and anti-HCV in 11[6.6%; 95%CI (3.4-11.5%)]. In the logistic regression analysis, male sex, and age ≥40 years were independent factors associated with the occurrence of anti-HBc. In conclusion, we verified a high frequency of HBV contact marker and a low frequency of HCV markers in patients with HIV/AIDS and TB in Recife.