Prevalence of Hepatitis E in Iran: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Abstract

<strong>Introduction:</strong> Hepatitis E infection is caused by the hepatitis E virus (HEV) and is a self-limiting disease with moderate-to-high prevalence in various regions. Considering that HEV is endemic in Iran, the present study aimed to systematically review the prevalence of HEV in Iran.<br /><strong>Methods:</strong> This systematic review was performed in May 2016 to investigate the prevalence of Hepatitis E infection in Iran via searching in databases such as PubMed, Scopus, and IranMedex using the following approach: (((Hepatitis E OR HEV)) AND (epidemiology OR frequency OR prevalence)) AND Iran. After collecting the proper documents, the required data were extracted and described.<br /><strong>Result:</strong> In total, 24 relevant articles with 12,555 study populations were collected in this study. The results of the review indicated that the prevalence of HEV is relatively high in the Iranian population. In the reviewed literature, the prevalence of HEV varied from 2.3% to more than 40%.<br /><strong>Conclusion:</strong> According to the results, the prevalence of HEV in Iran is similar to the rate reported in the other developing countries. Therefore, it is recommended that routine tests be conducted for the diagnosis of hepatitis E, especially in the suspected cases of acute non-A, non-B, and non-C hepatitis.