Seroprevalence of hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV among male injecting drug users in Afghanistan.

BACKGROUND

Viral hepatitis and HIV infections are common public health concerns among injecting drug users, however, there is limited evidence on their seroprevalence in Afghanistan.

AIM: To determine the seroprevalence of hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV among male injecting drug users at Ibn Sina Drug Addiction Treatment Hospital, Kabul, Afghanistan.

METHODS

Using a structured questionnaire, we interviewed 397 injecting drug users at Ibn Sina Drug Addiction Treatment Hospital, Kabul, Afghanistan, between November and December 2022. We collected and tested 3-5 ml blood samples from the participants. We analysed the data using Epi Info version 7.2.1 and used binary logistic regression and χ2 tests to identify potential predictors of blood-borne hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV infections.

RESULTS

Of the total participants, seroprevalence of hepatitis B was 3.79%, hepatitis C 2.77% and HIV 0.50%. Syringe reuse (10%), sharing of syringes (18.6%) and history of blood transfusion (20.2%) were common, but there was no statistically significant association between these predictors and infection (P < 0.05). However, using shared blades was positively associated with hepatitis B infection.

CONCLUSION

Although hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV seroprevalence were lower in our study than in previous studies, and no significant association was found between the risk factors and these diseases, there is a need to expand harm reduction services beyond needle-syringe programmes to include non-syringe components. The association between shared blade use and hepatitis B infection indicates that harm reduction efforts should also incorporate safe shaving practices.