Comparison Between the Frequency of Hepatitis E Virus Among Major Thalassemia Patients With Control Group in Mashhad, North East of Iran

Hepatitis E, a viral infectious disease transmitted through contaminated food and water, can vary from a simple asymptomatic infection to a lethal disease. Patients with frequent blood transfusion have more positive serology test than the others; also patients undergoing dialysis that continuously receive blood have higher serological infection rate. The current study aimed at determining the prevalence of hepatitis E virus (HEV) in patients with thalassemia major in Mashhad, Iran, compared with a healthy control group.
The study was performed on 150 patients with thalassemia and 150 blood donors attending Mashhad Blood Transfusion Organization laboratory. A 5-mL peripheral blood sample was taken from each person. After the separation of plasma/serum, the samples were stored at -20°C until testing. IgM and IgG antibodies of the samples were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique. Then, the collected data were analyzed by SPSS version 21 and Minitab software.
In the group of patients, 89 males (59.3%) and 61 females (7/40%), and in the control group 138 male (92%) and 12 females (8%) were enrolled. According to the results of the tests, 13 (8.6%) subjects in the control group and 4 (2.6%) in the patients group had HEV infection. There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of age. For a comparison between the 2 groups of patients and controls, abnormal hematological parameters including red blood cell (RBC), hematocrit (HCT), and hemoglobin (HB) distribution were considered using the Mann-Whitney test. Distribution of blood groups in the study groups was significant, but that of hematological parameters was insignificant.
Based on the results of the current study, HEV was detected in a few cases of patients with thalassemia major.