Department of Laboratory, Faculty of Medical Technology, University of Tobruk, Tobruk, Libya.
National Centre for Disease Control, Tobruk, Libya.
Food Environ Virol. 2022 Mar;14(1):89-93. doi: 10.1007/s12560-021-09499-5. Epub 2021 Oct 11.
Acute hepatitis A is a self-limited liver inflammation caused by hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection. The infection is transmitted by direct contact from person to person via fecal-oral routes, or through consuming contaminated food and water. This study aims to estimate the frequency of HAV infection from medical records of Tobruk Medical Center, eastern Libya and its distribution during 6 years. The medical records department of Tobruk Medical Center follows guidelines of the international classification of diseases-10 for coding the diseases. The research estimates the frequency and distribution of HAV infection based on age and sex during the period from January 2015 to December 2020. HAV screening assay was performed using commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays HAV IgM microwell. 245 cases were recorded, 53.5% of cases were males. HAV infection was the most prevalent (92.6%) in age groups of < 5-20 years. A significant rise in the occurrence of HAV infection in the last three years was reported (p < 0.05). More than half of the cases (68%) were reported in 2019 and 2020. No case fatality rate was reported in the present study. There is an increase in the frequency of HAV infection in the last 3 years and the younger age groups (under 20 years old) are more vulnerable to HAV infection. More prevention and control efforts towards this age group should be a top public health priority to avoid the possibility of HAV outbreaks in the future.
甲型肝炎是一种由甲型肝炎病毒（HAV）感染引起的自限性肝脏炎症。该感染通过粪-口途径直接接触人与人之间传播，或通过食用受污染的食物和水传播。本研究旨在从利比亚东部图卜鲁格医疗中心的医疗记录中估计 HAV 感染的频率及其在 6 年内的分布情况。图卜鲁格医疗中心的病历部门遵循国际疾病分类-10 对疾病进行编码的准则。本研究根据 2015 年 1 月至 2020 年 12 月期间的年龄和性别，估计 HAV 感染的频率和分布情况。使用市售的酶联免疫吸附测定 HAV IgM 微孔板进行 HAV 筛查检测。共记录 245 例，其中 53.5%为男性。HAV 感染在年龄组 <5-20 岁的人群中最为普遍（92.6%）。报告称，HAV 感染的发生率在过去三年中显著上升（p<0.05）。超过一半的病例（68%）发生在 2019 年和 2020 年。本研究未报告病死率。在过去 3 年中，HAV 感染的频率增加，年龄较小的（<20 岁）人群更容易感染 HAV。应将针对这一年龄组的更多预防和控制工作作为公共卫生的首要任务，以避免未来发生 HAV 爆发的可能性。
