EPIDEMIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF HEPATITIS E IN THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS

Background. The incidence of hepatitis E (HEV) in Belarus differs from the frequency of occurrence of anamnestic antibodies in the population. Objective. To study the epidemic trends of HEV in Belarus. Material and methods. The study included 5745 samples of blood serum obtained from: residents of Belarus (Brest and Brest region, Minsk and Minsk region) – 2784; foreign citizens - 1457; +ALT and -ALT blood donors – 378; domestic pigs - 1126. All samples were tested for anti-HEV IgG and IgM and 130 samples - for HEV RNA, 9 samples were genotyped by Sanger sequencing. Results. Seroprevalence of anti-HEV IgG in the population amounts to 7.3% (95 CI 5.8-9.0), and in patients with liver damage – to 11.2% (95% CI 9.6-12.9). For foreign citizens it equals 5.22% (95% CI 4.11-6.53), for domestic pigs – 33.75% (95% CI 30.44-37.32). The incidence of anti-HEI IgM in the population amounts to 1.35% (95% CI 0.75-2.22), and in patients with liver damage – to 4.25% (95% CI 3.32-5.37). For foreign citizens it equals 1.03% (95% CI 0.58–1.7), for +AlAT donors – 2.89% (95% CI 1.25–5.69). All HEV RNA sequences isolated in Belarus are caused by genotype 3. Conclusions. Epidemiological characteristics of HEV in Belarus are presented. The anti-HEV immunostructure of various population cohorts was studied. There have been established cases of imported HEV. Autochthonous cases of HEV have been identified as well.