Changes in Seroprevalence of Hepatitis A in Children and Adolescents in Manisa, Turkey

Background: Hepatitis A virus (HAV), being an enteric transmitting virus wide world, occurs mostly in children of developing countries. However, the virus has recently been seen in adolescents and young adults worldwide. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the seroprevalence of the HAV infection in children and adolescents in Manisa, Turkey, and to verify whether the increased incidence of HAV infection in other parts of the world and Turkey generally is also true for the area of Manisa.

Methods: The authors studied blood samples of 1395 adolescents and children aged between 6 months and 17 years from the Manisa area in order to evaluate the existence of anti-HAV antibodies using micro-ELISA test.

Results: Total seropositivity was 44.6% while age related values were as followed: 6-23 months, 47.8%; 2-6 years, 23.7%; 7-10 years, 43.4%; 11-14 years, 52.4%; and 15-17 years, 76.6%. These results suggest that the seropositivity increases significantly among children at school age and also increases parallel to age.

Conclusions: According to these results, the authors concluded that there has been a shift of seropositivity from children to adolescents especially in families with an average or high socio-economical level.