Microbiological laboratory, Qinhuai District Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Nanjing, China.
Microbiological laboratory, Xi'an Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Xi'an, China.
Epidemiol Infect. 2023 Jul 13;151:e122. doi: 10.1017/S0950268823001097.
This study aimed to assess the prevalence of anti-hepatitis E virus (HEV) immunoglobulin (Ig) M and elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels among employees in catering and public place industries. Blood samples were collected between January and December 2020 from 26,790 employees working in the Qinhuai district of Nanjing, China. Anti-HEV IgM in the serum samples was tested by the capture ELISA method and ALT was tested by the IFCC method. Samples positive for anti-HEV IgM or with ALT levels over 200 U/L were subjected to PCR screening of HEV RNA. The overall seroprevalence of anti-HEV IgM was 0.41%, and the seroprevalence was slightly higher in males (0.47%) than in females (0.37%); however, the difference was not substantial ( = 0.177). Seroprevalence of anti-HEV IgM increased with age, reaching its peak level after 48 years of age. The prevalence of elevated ALT levels was 4.24%, and males exhibited a higher prevalence than females (6.78% vs 2.65%, < 0.001). Prevalence of elevated ALT levels differed in age groups and the 26-36-year-old group had the highest rate of elevated ALT levels. Employees with elevated ALT levels had a higher prevalence of positive anti-HEV IgM than those with normal ALT (0.57% vs 0.31%, < 0.001). Positive HEV RNA was detected in one anti-HEV IgM-negative employee with ALT higher than 200 U/L. In our study, all the HEV RNA-positive and IgM-positive individuals are asymptomatic, and a combination of ALT tests, serological methods, and molecular methods is recommended to screen asymptomatic HEV carriers and reduce the risk of transmission.
本研究旨在评估餐饮和公共场所行业员工中抗戊型肝炎病毒 (HEV) 免疫球蛋白 (Ig) M 和血清丙氨酸氨基转移酶 (ALT) 水平升高的流行情况。2020 年 1 月至 12 月期间，采集了中国南京秦淮区 26790 名员工的血液样本。采用捕获 ELISA 法检测血清样本中的抗-HEV IgM，采用 IFCC 法检测 ALT。抗-HEV IgM 阳性或 ALT 水平超过 200 U/L 的样本进行 HEV RNA 的 PCR 筛查。抗-HEV IgM 的总血清阳性率为 0.41%，男性（0.47%）略高于女性（0.37%），但差异无统计学意义（=0.177）。抗-HEV IgM 的血清阳性率随年龄增长而升高，48 岁后达到峰值。ALT 水平升高的患病率为 4.24%，男性高于女性（6.78%比 2.65%，<0.001）。ALT 水平升高的患病率在年龄组之间存在差异，26-36 岁年龄组 ALT 水平升高的发生率最高。ALT 水平升高的员工抗-HEV IgM 阳性率高于 ALT 正常的员工（0.57%比 0.31%，<0.001）。在一名 ALT 高于 200 U/L 且抗-HEV IgM 阴性的员工中检测到 HEV RNA 阳性。在我们的研究中，所有 HEV RNA 阳性和 IgM 阳性的个体均无症状，建议联合使用 ALT 检测、血清学方法和分子方法筛查无症状 HEV 携带者，降低传播风险。
