Frequency of Hepatitis C Virus Genotypes in Chronic Hepatitis C Patients at Peshawar Institute of Medical Sciences, Peshawar

Background: Hepatitis C infection is highly prevalent in Pakistan. Six genotypes have been identified up till now. The most prevalent is genotype 3 in Pakistan. However, literature has shown variations among different regions in the prevalence of different genotypes. Objective: The Purpose of this study was to determine what is the prevalence of most common genotype of hepatitis C in the Peshawar district of KPK, Pakistan. Material & Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted from July 2017 to July 2020 at Peshawar Institute of Medical Sciences, Peshawar in collaboration with Department of Biochemistry, Khyber Medical College, Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Those patients whose blood sample turned out positive for Anti-HCV antibodies then underwent to PCR for HCV RNA. By using ROTOR Gene TM technique Genotype was found out. Data was analyzed by using SPSS version 18. Results: A total of 776 patients meeting the inclusion criteria, aged between 12 to 65 years, were included in this  study, out of which 413  (53.22%) and 363 (46.78%) were males and females respectively. Regarding HCV genotyping; 388 (50.0%) were type 3a, 28 (3.60%) 3b, 117 (15.07%) type 2a, 22 (2.83%) types 2b, 18(2.31%) type 1a and14 (1.80%) 1b.  17 (2.19%) patients mixed types 2a and 3b, 16 (2.10%) were combined3a and 3b and 156(20.1%) were un-type able. Conclusion: The most common genotype in population residing in Peshawar district is genotype 3a and the second most common genotype is genotype 2a. Key Words: HCV genotype, HCV-RNA, PIMC, PCR, ELSA, ROTOR Gene