Akmatov, M.K.; Beisheeva, N.J.; Nurmatov, A.Z.; Gulsunai, S.J.; Saikal, K.N.; Derkenbaeva, A.A.; Abdrahmanova, Z.O.; Prokein, J.; Klopp, N.; Illig, T.; Kasymov, O.T.; Nurmatov, Z.S.; Pessler, F. The Changing Epidemiology of Viral Hepatitis in a Post-Soviet Country—The Case of Kyrgyzstan. Pathogens2023, 12, 989.
Akmatov, M.K.; Beisheeva, N.J.; Nurmatov, A.Z.; Gulsunai, S.J.; Saikal, K.N.; Derkenbaeva, A.A.; Abdrahmanova, Z.O.; Prokein, J.; Klopp, N.; Illig, T.; Kasymov, O.T.; Nurmatov, Z.S.; Pessler, F. The Changing Epidemiology of Viral Hepatitis in a Post-Soviet Country—The Case of Kyrgyzstan. Pathogens 2023, 12, 989.
Akmatov, M.K.; Beisheeva, N.J.; Nurmatov, A.Z.; Gulsunai, S.J.; Saikal, K.N.; Derkenbaeva, A.A.; Abdrahmanova, Z.O.; Prokein, J.; Klopp, N.; Illig, T.; Kasymov, O.T.; Nurmatov, Z.S.; Pessler, F. The Changing Epidemiology of Viral Hepatitis in a Post-Soviet Country—The Case of Kyrgyzstan. Pathogens2023, 12, 989.
Akmatov, M.K.; Beisheeva, N.J.; Nurmatov, A.Z.; Gulsunai, S.J.; Saikal, K.N.; Derkenbaeva, A.A.; Abdrahmanova, Z.O.; Prokein, J.; Klopp, N.; Illig, T.; Kasymov, O.T.; Nurmatov, Z.S.; Pessler, F. The Changing Epidemiology of Viral Hepatitis in a Post-Soviet Country—The Case of Kyrgyzstan. Pathogens 2023, 12, 989.
Abstract
Historically, viral hepatitis is a considerable public health problem in Central Asian countries, which may have worsened after dissolution of the Soviet Union. However, up-to-date seroepidemiological studies are lacking. The aim of the present study was, therefore, to provide current estimates of seroprevalence of viral hepatitis in Kyrgyzstan, one of the economically least developed countries in the region. We conducted a population-based cross-sectional study in 2018 in the capital of Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek (n=1075). Participants, children and adults, were recruited from an outpatient clinic. Data were collected during face-to-face interviews. A blood sample (6 ml) was collected from each participant and tested with ELISA for the presence of serological markers for five viral hepatitides (A, B, C, D and E). Poststratification weighting was performed to obtain nationally representative findings. The overwhelming majority of the study participants were positive for anti-HAV (estimated seroprevalence, 75.3%; 95% confidence interval: 72.5–77.9%). The weighted seroprevalence estimates of HBsAg, anti-HCV and anti-HDV were 2.2% (1.5–3.3%), 3.8% (2.8–5.1%), and 0.40% (0.15–1.01%), respectively. Anti-HEV seropositivity was 3.3% (2.4–4.5%). Of the 33 HBsAg positive participants, five (15%) were anti-HDV positive. Our study confirms that Kyrgyzstan remains a high endemic country for hepatitis virus A and C infections. However, seroprevalences of HBV and HDV were lower than previously reported, and based on these data, the country could potentially be reclassified from high to (lower) intermediate endemicity. The observed anti-HEV seroprevalence resembles the low endemicity pattern characteristic of high-income countries.
Keywords
endemicity pattern; hepatitis A; hepatitis B; hepatitis C; hepatitis D; hepatitis E; seroprevalence; general population; Kyrgyzstan; post-Soviet country; WHO European Region
Subject
Public Health and Healthcare, Public, Environmental and Occupational Health
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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