One in nearly 3,000 blood donors in England are believed to be carriers of the hepatitis E virus, which can cause liver disease. This is the conclusion of a British study published in The Lancet.
The hepatitis E virus is believed to be present in one in 2,800 blood donations in Great Britain. This is indeed the conclusion of a British study, on a systematic analysis of blood donations, published this Monday in the scientific journal The Lancet on the occasion of World Hepatitis Day.
100,000 possible infections per year in England
In detail, this shows that 79 out of 225,000 donations were infected with a version of the virus (HEV), genotype 3, predominant in developed countries. Even more worrying, the virus was transmitted here to 18 of 43 patients (42%) transfused with positive blood products on tests, the authors say.
In this context, Dr Richard Tedder (Blood Borne Virus Unit, Public Health Service, London), lead author of the study, estimates that there are “between 80,000 and 100,000” infections with the E virus. of hepatitis per year in England.
A frequency similar to that recently reported in Sweden and Germany, which suggests that “the virus is widespread on the European continent”, notes this scientist.
Towards systematic donor screening?
To reassure the population, however, the English research team recalls that most people recover without treatment for hepatitis E. Even if they stress that this virus “can be dangerous, especially for pregnant women and the immunocompromised (patients with cancer on corticosteroids and chemotherapy, transplanted …) who risk developing serious liver damage. “A” low “risk according to the authors of the study who conclude that there is” no urgent need currently for screening donated blood. “
A “surprising” conclusion, according to Prof. Jean-Michel Pawlotsky, specialist in viral hepatitis (Henri Mondor hospital, Paris, France), who also comments on this work in the journal The Lancet.
For him, “systematic screening of blood donations for hepatitis E must be implemented in regions where the virus is endemic, including the European Union, and including in France,” he commented to of our colleagues from Agence France Presse (AFP).
In order to reduce “its cost, screening can be done on each batch grouping several donations. If the batch is positive, we can then test the donors to find the one carrying the virus, ”he continued.
As a reminder, China has produced and licensed a vaccine against hepatitis E which is not available everywhere in the world. In the absence of more specific treatment, specialists now resort to ribavirin, an antiviral drug used for other infections.
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