J Korean Med Sci.  1992 Dec;7(4):333-336. 10.3346/jkms.1992.7.4.333.

Prevalence of Hepatitis C Virus Antibody Among Korean Adults

• Kim YS
• Pai CH
• Chi HS
• Kim DW
• Min YI
• Ahn YO

• KMID: 1421934
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.1992.7.4.333

Abstract

To estimate the prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among Korean adults and to present the putative route of HCV transmission among them, serum samples from 4917 adults older than 20 years of age were tested for antibody to HCV (anti-HCV), and histories of blood transfusion and other pertinent information were obtained by self-administered questionnaires. The overall prevalence of anti-HCV was 1.7%; prevalence was 1.4% in subjects with normal levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT), 3.3% in those with slightly elevated and 5.9% in those with markedly elevated levels of the enzymes. The prevalence of anti-HCV increased with increasing age (P < 0.01), but was not associated with blood transfusion. The present study suggests that the prevalence of HCV infection was 1.4% and that the major routes of HCV transmission may be other than blood transfusion in healthy Korean adults.

Keyword

Hepatitis C Virus; anti-HCV

MeSH Terms

Adult
Aged
Chi-Square Distribution
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
Female
Hepacivirus/immunology/*isolation & purification
Hepatitis Antibodies/*blood
Hepatitis C/*epidemiology/immunology/transmission
Hepatitis C Antibodies
Humans
Korea/epidemiology
Male
Middle Aged
Prevalence
Questionnaires
Radioimmunoassay
Retrospective Studies
Hepatitis Antibodies
Hepatitis C Antibodies