The study of seroprevalence of hepatitis E virus and an investigation into the lifestyle behaviours of the aborigines in Malaysia

Wong, Li Ping; Alias, Haridah; Choy, Seow Huey; Goh, Xiang Ting; Lee, Soo Ching; Lim, Yvonne Ai Lian; Kee, Boon Pin; Chua, Kek Heng; Kamaruzaman, Adeeba; Tang, Zimin; Zhao, Qinjian; Wu, Ting

doi:10.1111/zph.12681

Cited by 9 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Over two decades since these studies, there have been no further reports on HEV seroprevalence in Malaysia. A 2019 study found an anti-HEV IgG positive rate of 5.9% in a sample of Orang Asli in the state of Negeri Sembilan [ 22 ]. With the worrisome upward trend in HEV seroprevalence across the world and the fact that transfusion-transmitted HEV can cause serious clinical consequences, this study screened the previously archived blood donor samples in Malaysia for anti-HEV IgM/ IgG to determine an up-to-date seroprevalence.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Risk of Transfusion-Transmitted Hepatitis E Virus: Evidence from Seroprevalence Screening of Blood Donations

Wong

Lee

Khor

et al. 2021

Indian J Hematol Blood Transfus

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Throughout the world, there has been growing concern over the risk of hepatitis E virus (HEV) transmission via blood transfusion. The present study screened blood donor samples for anti-HEV immunoglobulin M (IgM) and immunoglobulin G (IgG). The prevalence of HEV infection was assessed on a total of 1,003 archived serum samples obtained from the National Blood Centre, Malaysia. The samples were collected from healthy blood donor from Klang Valley between 2017 and 2018. All samples were tested for IgM and IgG antibodies to HEV using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). HEV-specific IgG antibodies were detected in 31/1003 (3.1%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.1%–4.4%) and IgM in 9/1003 (0.9%; 95% CI 0.4%–1.7%) samples. In bivariate analysis, there was no significant difference in the prevalence of anti-HEV IgG with respect to gender and district of origin. Although not statistically significant, males had higher odds of having anti-HEV IgG than females (odds ratio [OR] = 2.86; 95% CI 0.95–8.64). All anti-HEV IgG positive individuals were people of Chinese descent. Anti-HEV IgG increased significantly with age, from 0.6% (95% CI 0.1%–2.6%) of 18–30-year-old donors to 7.4% (95% CI 2.7%–17.0%) of donors older than 50 years and was highest among non-professional workers (5.3%; 95% CI 2.5%–10.5%). Increasing age and a non-professional occupation remained significant predictors for anti-HEV IgG in the multivariable analysis. Screening of blood donations for HEV in Malaysia is important to safeguard the health of transfusion recipients. The higher rates of HEV infection in blood from older donors and donors who are non-professional workers may provide insights into targeted groups for blood screening.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Risk of Transfusion-Transmitted Hepatitis E Virus: Evidence from Seroprevalence Screening of Blood Donations

Wong

Lee

Khor

et al. 2021

Indian J Hematol Blood Transfus

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“…From April 2011 to February 2013, Wong et al (2020) collected 207 blood samples from healthy aboriginal communities and analyzed for anti-HEV IgG and IgM in 2018 and conducted semi-structured interviews through a cross-sectional study. Usage of river water for daily washing and recreational swimming occasionally or when clean water sources was not available, seems to be one of the major reasons causing HEV infection in the aboriginal villages at Negeri Sembilan and Selangor.…”

Section: Hepatitis and Enterovirusmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Usage of river water for daily washing and recreational swimming occasionally or when clean water sources was not available, seems to be one of the major reasons causing HEV infection in the aboriginal villages at Negeri Sembilan and Selangor. Participants also claimed that outbreaks of HEV were not uncommon, this could imply that WASH practices and surveillance in the aboriginal communities need to be improved to prevent transmission of HEV (Wong et al, 2020). A cross-sectional study was conducted on 120 university students in Klang Valley to evaluate KAP, which is important to reduce the risk of viral hepatitis infection.…”

Section: Hepatitis and Enterovirusmentioning

confidence: 99%

Towards an Integrated Approach to Improve the Understanding of the Relationships Between Water-Borne Infections and Health Outcomes: Using Malaysia as a Detailed Case Study

Lavinya

Kay

et al. 2022

Front. Water

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As in many low- and middle-income countries around the world, thousands of local communities in Southeast Asia rely on river water to sustain their livelihoods. However, poor water quality threatens the health of both humans and ecosystems. The aim of this review was to examine the available literature to investigate how health outcomes in Malaysia have been studied and reported as directly attributable to human infections from river water. Computer-aided searches from 10 electronic databases were undertaken, with searches limited to the English language and publication dates since January 2010. The literature search revealed that the predominant river water infections identified in Malaysia were bacterial (coliforms, Salmonella spp., typhoid, leptospirosis, melioidosis), viral (including dengue, hepatitis, enterovirus), parasitic infections including amoebiasis, giardiasis and cryptosporidiosis, helminth infections, Blastocystis infections and sarcocystosis. No studies were found that have attempted to evaluate the impact of water related infection on human health longitudinally. Moreover, the possibility of integrated water governance systems that could reduce infection and improve water quality, particularly for marginalized groups have not been discussed or studied. Several cross-sectional studies identified infections at a point in time, but large longitudinal data sets of water infection parameters and how they influence human health outcomes have not been reported. Using Malaysia as a demonstration case study, we suggest a number of recommendations based on using a systems approach to tackle the challenges involved in data collection and integration, which is central to the understanding, strategic planning and management of water-borne infections.

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“…A recent study in 2019 on a relatively large sample of the indigenous population in Malaysia found an anti-HEV IgG positive rate of 5.9%. 26 Most recently, in 2020, HEV-specific IgG antibodies were detected in 3.1% and IgM in 0.9% of blood donor samples in Malaysia. 27 Of note, the prevalence of HEV viraemia varies among global blood donors.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serological Evidence of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Infection Among Ruminant Farmworkers: A Retrospective Study from Malaysia

Wong¹,

Tay²,

Chua³

et al. 2022

IDR

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Background As scant data are available about Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection in Malaysia, this study aimed to determine the seroprevalence of HEV amongst ruminant farmworkers in Malaysia. Methods A total of 87 farmworkers provided serum samples, which were collected from eight farms. All serum samples were tested for anti-HEV IgG and anti-HEV IgM by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using the Wantai HEV-IgG and HEV-IgM ELISA kits from Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise Co., Ltd, Beijing, China. Results Farmworkers from six cattle farms, one sheep farm and one goat farm were investigated in this study. Only one farm practices zero-grazing, with the rest using rotational grazing. Of the 87 farmworkers, males comprised 83.9%, and almost half (47.1%) were aged 20–35 years old. By ethnic group, the vast majority were Malay. Most of the farmworkers have good hygiene practices; washing or changing their clothes and showering after dealing with farm animals were common. None of the farmworker serum samples had anti-HEV IgM and IgG detected (95% confidence interval (CI): 0, 0.0415). Conclusion The finding suggests that the farmworkers had no previous exposure to Hepatitis E, and were not at risk of occupational exposure to HEV infection. Our findings suggest that a zero seroprevalence of HEV infection among ruminant farmworkers in the Muslim majority country. Good farm management, hygiene practices and the absence of contact with swine-related contamination might have contributed to the no or minimal zoonotic risks of HEV amongst farmworkers surveyed in this study.

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The study of seroprevalence of hepatitis E virus and an investigation into the lifestyle behaviours of the aborigines in Malaysia

Cited by 9 publications

References 15 publications

The Risk of Transfusion-Transmitted Hepatitis E Virus: Evidence from Seroprevalence Screening of Blood Donations

The Risk of Transfusion-Transmitted Hepatitis E Virus: Evidence from Seroprevalence Screening of Blood Donations

Towards an Integrated Approach to Improve the Understanding of the Relationships Between Water-Borne Infections and Health Outcomes: Using Malaysia as a Detailed Case Study

Serological Evidence of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Infection Among Ruminant Farmworkers: A Retrospective Study from Malaysia

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