HCV is one of the main causes of chronic hepatitis in developing countries and is
particularly distributed via blood and blood product transfusion. ELISA serological method
is currently used as laboratory diagnostic test in Iran, but both clinical and laboratory
diagnosis of acute HCV infection remains yet as a problem. The aim of this study was to
determine results obtained by PCR and ELISA techniques in detection of HCV in serum
samples. Using ELISA and RT-PCR, 159 serum samples were analyzed. Thirty four
negative samples (22.35%) and 45 positive samples (27.95%) were detected by both
techniques. Thirty two samples (19.88%) were positive by PCR and negative by ELISA
and 48 samples (29.82%) were negative by PCR and positive by ELISA. Present results
show that there are significant differences between PCR and ELISA diagnostic tests for
HCV detection.
