Academy of Medical Sciences of I.R. Iran Archives of Iranian Medicine 1029-2977 13 2 2010 02 01 Seroprevalence and Risk Factors of Hepatitis A Virus Infection in Iran: a Population Based Study 99 104 EN Shahin Merat Houri Rezvan Mehdi Nouraie Hassan Abolghasemi Raika Jamali Sedigheh Amini-Kafiabad Mahtab Maghsudlu Akram Pourshams Reza Malekzadeh Journal Article <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"> <meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"> <meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"> <meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"> <link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5Camir%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml" /> <link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5Camir%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx" /> <link rel="colorSchemeMapping" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5Camir%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_colorschememapping.xml" /><style type="text/css">  </style> </meta> </meta> </meta> </meta> Background: In older studies, the seroprevalence of hepatitis A virus infection has been reported to be over 95% in Iranians. Most of these studies were performed on volunteer blood donors. Studies on the general population are sparse. The purpose of this study was to determine the current seroprevalence of hepatitis A virus infection in the general population of Iran.<o:p></o:p> Methods: During 2006, 1869 subjects between 18 and 65 years of age were randomly selected from the general population of three Iranian provinces (Tehran, Golestan, and Hormozgan). Subjects were interviewed and a plasma sample was obtained for serologic testing for anti- hepatitis A virus. Univariate and multivariate analysis was performed to identify risk factors.<o:p></o:p> Results: The seroprevalence of hepatitis A virus in Tehran, Golestan and Hormozgan was 85%, 99%, and 96%, respectively. The overall seroprevalence of hepatitis A virus in the general population of the three provinces studied was 86% and did not differ between the two genders. The prevalence in younger subjects and in urban populations was under 70%. In multivariate analysis, older age, being married, and level of the father’s education was associated with hepatitis A virus seropositivity.<o:p></o:p> Conclusion: The seroprevalence of hepatitis A virus still appears to be too elevated for recommending routine vaccination in the general population. However, the trend towards a lower prevalence in younger age groups and people from urban areas points towards the possible benefit of vaccination in these subgroups.