IJAMBR 5 (2017) 123-131 ISSN 2053-1818 Prevalence of HIV, HBV and HCV and their co-infection during primary investigation and before ART in Eastern Region of Nepal Sanjay Mahato 1,2 *, Asmita Mahato 1 and Jaybendra Yadav 3 1 Aasra Research and Education Academy Counsel, Biratnagar 7, Zip code–56613, Nepal. 2 Department of Microbiology, Mahendra Morang Adarsha Multiple Campus, Tribhuvan University, Biratnagar 16, Zip code–56613, Nepal. 3 Department of Pathology and Microbiology Unit, Koshi Zonal Hospital, Biratnagar, Zip code–56613, Nepal. Article History ABSTRACT Received 03 September, 2017 Received in revised form 01 November, 2017 Accepted 07 November, 2017 Keywords: Co-infection, Hepatitis B viruses, Hepatitis C viruses, HIV, Prevalence, Seroprevalence. Article Type: Full Length Research Article The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of hepatitis B viruses (HBV), hepatitis C viruses (HCV) and human immune deficiency viruses (HIV) and their co-infection during primary screening before antiretroviral therapy (ART) in the Eastern region of Nepal. This was a cross-sectional observational study, in which 3,716 individuals, attending Koshi Zonal Hospital, Biratnagar, Nepal, were investigated for HBV, HCV, and HIV from June 2016 to May 2017. Among 3,716 patients [female 2880 (77.5%) and male 836 (22.5%)], HIV was found in 101 (2.7%), HBV in 53 (1.4%) and HCV in 15 (0.4%). HIV was found in 65.3% of males and 34.7% of females, HBV in 47.2% of males and 52.8% of females, and HCV in 93.3% of males and 6.7% of females. The overall rate of co-infection with HBV and/or HCV was 5.9% (6 out of 101 HIV positives). Only 3.0% were positive for both HIV and HBV infection marker and 2.0% were positive for HIV and HCV markers. Only isolates (1.0%) was positive for all three markers of HIV, HBV and HCV. A significant association was observed between gender and the prevalence of HIV, HBV or HCV (p<0.001). Marital status and the prevalence were non- significant. Most of the HIV positive was found in 30-39 years of age group (32.2%), while HBV in 20-29 years group (45.3%) and HCV in 30-39 years group (40.0%). The co-infections were restricted to the age group of 30-39 and 40-49 years. Regular screening for HIV, HBV and HCV among patients with a doubtful history can help in detecting many new cases at the appropriate time. ©2017 BluePen Journals Ltd. All rights reserved INTRODUCTION Hepatitis B viruses (HBV), hepatitis C viruses (HCV) and human immune deficiency viruses (HIV) are the three most common chronic viral pathogen known. Despite their biological differences and natural history of chronic infection, the viruses have common routes of transmission (such as blood and blood products, sharing needles to inject drugs and sexual activities) and similar *Corresponding author. E-mail: mahato.sanjay@gmail.com. risk factors (Kellerman et al., 2003; Chen et al., 2016). These viruses are associated with increased morbidity and mortality. An estimated 240 million people have chronic hepatitis B virus infection, 130-150 million people have chronic hepatitis C virus infection (WHO, 2016) and 34-39.8 million people have HIV (WHO, 2017a). Moreover, hepatitis B is estimated to result in 887,000 deaths annually versus 399,000 deaths from hepatitis C worldwide (WHO, 2017b; WHO, 2017c). Prevalence of hepatitis B and C in HIV-infected individuals has been reported to be higher than that of the general population.