[The prevalence of hepatitis B and C in blood donors in a 3rd-level hospital of Mexico City]. / Prevalencia de hepatitis B y C en donadores de sangre en un hospital de tercer nivel de la ciudad de México.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and B virus (HBV) in blood donors attending Médica Sur Hospital. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 9,099 blood donors were tested for hepatitis B and C viruses from 1994 to 1998. A questionnaire was used to collect data and HCV and HBV were detected in serum. We obtained percentages and assessed statistical significance using the chi 2 test. RESULTS: The prevalence of HCV and HBV carriers was 0.47 and 0.11 per cent. The main risk factors were dental procedures (11.6% for HCV and 20%, for HBV), and unsafe sexual practices (20%) for HBV. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate a low prevalence of HCV and HBV infection in this population.