Prevalence of Hepatitis C Virus Antibodies Among Blood Donors at University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, South South Nigeria

Hepatitis C virus infection is a major cause of chronic liver disease, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma, and its transmission through blood transfusion represents a preventable public health risk. This study determined the prevalence of anti-HCV antibodies among blood donors at University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Cross River State, South South Nigeria. A retrospective cross-sectional study examined laboratory screening records of 500 voluntary blood donors over a two-year period from 2022 to 2024. HCV antibody detection was performed using third-generation enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. Donor demographic data including age, sex, and blood group were extracted from the blood bank register. The overall seroprevalence of HCV antibodies was 4.4%. Male donors had higher seroprevalence than female donors at 5.1% versus 2.9%. The age group 31 to 40 years recorded the highest prevalence. Blood group O donors had the highest representation among positive cases, though this may reflect their higher overall proportion in the donor pool. Family replacement donors had higher seroprevalence than voluntary donors. The findings confirm that HCV remains a transfusion safety concern in South South Nigeria. The study recommends mandatory pre-donation HCV screening using nucleic acid amplification testing for higher sensitivity, promotion of voluntary non-remunerated blood donation, and comprehensive donor health education campaigns. Keywords: hepatitis C virus, blood donors, seroprevalence, transfusion safety, Calabar