ENVIRONMENTAL INTRA•FAMILIAL SPREAD OF HEPATITIS • C VIRUS AMONG DIFFERENT SOCIAL LEVELS

Abstract

This stud y was carried out on fifty patients with chronic hepatitis C and their fam ilies (total n umber 240 subjects). The patients were chosen randomly in the Hepatology Clinic at Wadi El-Nil Hospital.

A ll the patients were subjected to two types of questionna ires; the first was an env iron mental one to clarify the possible environmental risk factors t hat could affect t he prevalence of hepatitis C v irus while th e second questionnaire was formulated specifi cal l y to reflect t he possible psycho-social effects of t he hepatiti s C v irus. j The spouses and children of the patients were tested for a nti-I-ICY 1 to evaluate the intra-familial prevalence and the posi tive contacts were tested for I-ICY -RNA (by polymerase ch ain react ion ) to reflect the existing viraemia.

The patients were di v ided into three groups I, II and III and they were s u bjected to differe nt com bin at ions of therapy composed of si lymarine as a natural cellular stabilizer, levamisol as an i mmun o­ mod ul ator, riba v iri n as anti-viral and alpha interferon as a v i rocidal and immunomodulator, in a trial to achieve t he best regimen o f treatmen t of hepatitis C v irus.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of i ntrafami lia l hepati tis C v irus trans mi ssion a mong different social l evels; to identify t he possi ble en v ironmental and socio-beh av ioural factors which co uld affect such prevalence and hence to cl arif y the possi ble environ men tal