A Study on the Prevalence and the Risk Factors of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in Kurdistan Region, Iraq: A Multicenter Study

Abstract

Objectives: The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of HBV infection and investigate the HBV-related risk factors in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Methods: Sera samples were collected from 3423 patients visiting three centers and tested for HBV positivity by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. A questionnaire was prepared and used by the volunteers who collected data, including age, marital status, and different HBV-related risk factors, through face-to-face interviews. Results: The mean age of the recruited participants was 28.94 ± 11.17 years. In addition, 873/3423 (25.47%) were males, and 3024/3423 (88.34%) were married. Furthermore, HBV infection had a prevalence of 1.37% (47/3243). Multivariate analysis was conducted to identify the predictive factors of HBV infection, which revealed that a history of tattoos and age were predictive factors (P < 0.05). We then stratified our data according to sex. No association was found between the various factors and HBV positivity in males. On the other hand, in females, a significant association was found between the history of tattoos or age and HBV positivity (P < 0.05). Conclusion: In conclusion, the prevalence of HBV infection was low. Our study showed that a history of tattooing and older age were predictive of HBV infection. Our results could be used as a basis for local elimination programs.