Seroprevalence of Hepatitis E Virus in Roma Settlements: A Comparison with the General Population in Slovakia

Monika Halánová, Eduard Veseliny, Zuzana Kalinová, Peter Jarčuška, Martin Janičko, Ingrid Urbančíková, Daniel Pella, Sylvia Dražilová, Ingrid Babinská and HepaMeta Team
Additional contact information
Monika Halánová: Department of Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, 04180 Košice, Slovakia
Eduard Veseliny: 1st Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Pavol Jozef Safarik University in Kosice, 04011 Košice, Slovakia
Zuzana Kalinová: Department of Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, 04180 Košice, Slovakia
Peter Jarčuška: 1st Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Pavol Jozef Safarik University in Kosice, 04011 Košice, Slovakia
Martin Janičko: 1st Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Pavol Jozef Safarik University in Kosice, 04011 Košice, Slovakia
Ingrid Urbančíková: Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, 04011 Košice, Slovakia
Daniel Pella: 1st Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Pavol Jozef Safarik University in Kosice, 04011 Košice, Slovakia
Sylvia Dražilová: Department of Internal Medicine, University Hospital Poprad, 05801 Poprad, Slovakia
Ingrid Babinská: Department of Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, 04180 Košice, Slovakia
HepaMeta Team: andrea.geckova@upjs.sk

IJERPH, 2018, vol. 15, issue 5, 1-8

Abstract: Hepatitis E infection is one of the most frequent causes of acute hepatitis in the world. Currently five human genotypes with different geographical distributions and distinct epidemiologic patterns are identified. In Slovakia, only rare cases of hepatitis E have been reported in past years. Because the most important risk factors associated with HEV infection include consumption of contaminated pork meat and poor hygienic standards, the aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of anti-HEV total antibodies and the main risk factors for HEV in the population living in separated and segregated Roma settlements ( n = 195), which represent places with increased risk of infection in Slovakia and to compare it with the prevalence in the general population ( n = 69). Of 264 respondents included in the study, 47 (17.8%) showed positivity for anti-HEV antibodies, 42 of whom were Roma (21.5%, n = 195) and 5 (7.2%, n = 69) non-Roma. The population living in Roma settlements lives in poorer conditions and are at higher risk of HEV in comparison to the general population. However, differences in living conditions within the settlements do not contributed to lower risk of HEV antibody prevalence between Roma living in settlements.

Keywords: hepatitis E; prevalence; risk factors; Roma population; Slovakia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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