Prevalence Of Hepatitis C Virus Infection In Diabetic Subjects At Enugu State University Of Science And Technology Teaching Hospital, Parklane, Enugu.

ABSTRACT

The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of anti-HCV antibodies amongst diabetics in Enugu. This is important as it has been indicated that presence of HCV in diabetics could lead to insulin resistance and thus increases diabetic complications. A total of 138 diabetics were recruited for this study, with a population control of 102 apparently healthy subjects, within the same age. A structured questionnaire was used to obtain information on the demographic, comorbid and diabetic complications. Blood samples were collected through venepuncture and serum extracted from them. The serum was analysed for antiHCV antibodies using anti-HCV antibody EIA, 4th generation kit. The lipid profile and alanine amino transaminase levels of the infected diabetics and few uninfected diabetics were also estimated using a commercially prepared kit respectively. The results were analysed statistically with significant levels taken at p