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Hepatitis C Virus Infection in Employees of a Large University Hospital in Israel

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Simona Sermoneta-Gertel ,
Milka Donchin ,
Ruth Adler ,
Mario Baras ,
Tamar Perlstein ,
Noga Manny ,
Daniel Shouval  and
Eithan Galun
Simona Sermoneta-Gertel
Affiliation:
Liver Unit, Division of Medicine, Hadassah University Hospital, Ein-Kerem, Jerusalem, Israel
Milka Donchin
Affiliation:
Occupational Health Unit, Hadassah University Hospital, Ein-Kerem, Jerusalem, Israel
Ruth Adler
Affiliation:
Liver Unit, Division of Medicine, Hadassah University Hospital, Ein-Kerem, Jerusalem, Israel
Mario Baras
Affiliation:
Department of Social Medicine, Hadassah University Hospital, Ein-Kerem, Jerusalem, Israel
Tamar Perlstein
Affiliation:
Liver Unit, Division of Medicine, Hadassah University Hospital, Ein-Kerem, Jerusalem, Israel
Noga Manny
Affiliation:
Blood Bank, Hadassah University Hospital, Ein-Kerem, Jerusalem, Israel
Daniel Shouval
Affiliation:
Liver Unit, Division of Medicine, Hadassah University Hospital, Ein-Kerem, Jerusalem, Israel
Eithan Galun*
Affiliation:
Liver Unit, Division of Medicine, Hadassah University Hospital, Ein-Kerem, Jerusalem, Israel
*
Liver Unit, Hadassah Medical Organization, POB 12000, 91120 Jerusalem, Israel
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Abstract

Objective:

To assess whether hospital work constitutes a risk factor for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among employees of a large hospital in Israel.

Design:

Seroprevalence survey.

Setting:

A 1,006-bed, tertiary-care university hospital in Jerusalem.

Participants:

All 5,444 employees (18-65 years old) were eligible; 4,287 (79%) participated in the survey.

Methods:

Sera were tested for antibodies to HCV (anti-HCV) using a third-generation enzyme immunoassay. A third-generation strip immunoblot assay was used for confirmation. Participants were interviewed regarding their occupational history, and they completed a self-administered questionnaire covering history of non-occupational exposure to blood and country of birth. Other demographic information was obtained from the personnel department. Rates and odds ratios (ORs) were calculated, and multivariate logistic-regression analyses were performed to adjust for potential confounding variables.

Results:

Anti-HCV was found in 0.9% of employees (37/4,287; 95% confidence interval, 0.6-1.1), ranging from 0.1% among those born in Israel to 5.7% among those born in Central Asia. After age, gender, social status, country of birth, and history of blood transfusion were controlled for in a logistic regression, occupational exposure to blood ≥10 years was significantly associated with the presence of antibodies (OR, 2.6; P=.01). Presence of anti-HCV also was associated with country of birth (range: Israel OR, 1; West OR, 3.8 [P=.1]; Central Asia OR, 48.6 [P<.0001]) and history of blood transfusion (OR, 2.7; P=.01). No significant associations were found between anti-HCV and age, gender, social status, history of tattoo, acupuncture, current occupation, department, exposure to blood in current occupation, adherence to safety precautions, or history of percutaneous injury. The association with length of exposure was stronger (OR, 3.6; P=.01) when the same logistic regression was run excluding the outlier ethnic group of Central Asia.

Conclusions:

Hospital work does not seem to constitute a major risk factor for HCV infection in Israel today. A higher prevalence of anti-HCV among employees with longer versus shorter lengths of occupational exposure may be due to a cumulative effect of exposure over the years. Infection control efforts in recent years may have contributed to this association.

Type
Original Articles
Information
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology , Volume 22 , Issue 12 , December 2001 , pp. 754 - 761
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 2001

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