@article{hbkup:/content/journals/10.5339/qmj.2000.2.20, author = "Al Wtaify, A. S. and Hassan, M. K.", title = "Prevalence of hepatitis c virus infection among multitransfused thalassemic children in Basrah – Iraq", journal= "Qatar Medical Journal", year = "2000", volume = "2000", number = "2", pages = "", doi = "https://doi.org/10.5339/qmj.2000.2.20", url = "https://www.qscience.com/content/journals/10.5339/qmj.2000.2.20", publisher = "Hamad bin Khalifa University Press (HBKU Press)", issn = "2227-0426", type = "Journal Article", eid = "20", abstract = "Between November 1998 and May 1999 a prospective study for HCV antibodies was conducted on 200 patients (113 males and 87 females), with B-thalassemia major and sickle cell-thalassemia, who were attending the thalassemia center at Basrah Maternity and Children Hospital. Their ages ranged from 1-18 years with a mean age of 9 years. Nineteen patients (9.5%) were found to have antibodies in comparison to only one (0.5%) amongst the 200 children of a control group. The risk of exposure to HCV was higher than for HBs antigen and HIV amongst the same patients. Anti-HCV seropositivity was significantly higher amongst patients with B-thalassemia major than patients with sickle cell-thalassemia and patients older than 10 years. The study showed also that anti-HCV seropositivity was directly related to the frequency of blood transfusion and there were significant elevations of serum bilirubin and aminotransferase levels amongst seropositive thalassemic patients compared to seronegative patients.", }