Objective: The objectives of this study were to know the prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in a population of pregnant women, to evaluate the vertical transmission rates of HCV in a prospective study and to determine the repercussions and consequences in children born to infected mothers.
Patients and methods: A total of 6556 pregnant women were tested for HCV antibodies from January 1993 to August 1995. We followed 50 babies born to infected mothers for at least 12 months (mean 15 months). Serological assays employed included a screening ELISA II confirmed with immunoblot. Viral detection was performed by qualitative and quantitative PCR for HCV-RNA.
Results: Fifty-nine pregnant women were AcHCV(+). This represents a seroprevalence of 0.9%. Of the 50 babies followed, 6 were PCR(+) and 44 were PCR(-). The risk of transmission is correlated with the titer of HCV-RNA in the mother. All mothers of infected babies were HIV (-).
Conclusions: The rate of prevalence in our pregnant women population is 0.9%. We found a vertical transmission rate of 12%. The high serum HCV-RNA titers in the mothers are a risk factor of transmission of HCV. The viremia in the children does not predict the apparition of the clinical disease, although they can exhibit intermittent increases of transaminases.