Enclosed the plate with glue slip and was incubated at 37C for one hour. increasing rapidly. Previously, it has been anticipated that during pregnancy viral hepatitis is definitely often associated with the development of hepatocellular carcinoma through estrogen secretion which leads to improved maternal mortality. Moreover, during pregnancy, the comprehensive immune containment also contributes to the enlargement of malignancy [7]. The transmission routes for both HBV and HCV viruses are of great apprehension especially the vertical transmission from mother to offspring [8]. Among them, HBV is definitely transmitting through mucosal or parenteral contact to body fluids and infected blood, normally either by a horizontal or vertical transmission route during infancy in exceedingly endemic areas which results in an elevated rate of chronic infections [8]. During delivery, approximately 90% of the children infected with HBV have a high risk Elobixibat of becoming a chronic carrier and about 15 to 25% chances of growing hepatocellular carcinoma during old age which ultimately prospects to mortality [8]. The prenatal transmission rate of both the HBV and HCV viruses is about 10 and 5%, Elobixibat respectively. The maternal transmission of HBV illness can be reduced from 85 to 95% through a dose of Hepatitis B vaccine in combination with hepatitis B immune globulins to the neonate [8]. The epidemiology of viral hepatitis infections in a human population can be anticipated by the risk factors such as ear/nose piercing, tattooing on the body, dental extraction, surgical procedure, history of abortion, history of sexually transmitted disease (STD), shaving eyebrow, body piercing for treatment, delivery by TBA, receiving a blood transfusion, multiple sexual partners, history of contact with a jaundiced individual, injections and vertical transmission [9]. Nowadays, routine antenatal HBV and HCV screening of mothers during Elobixibat pregnancy become an important part of general public health concern worldwide to prevent vertical transmission of these viral infections, which are the fundamental cause of maternal death. With this in mind, the present cross-sectional study was designed to investigate the seroepidemiology and the possible associated risk factors of HBV and HCV among pregnant women attending antenatal care and attention services at selected Private hospitals: Bacha Khan Medical Complex (BKMC) Shahmansoor and DHQ Hospital in Swabi which is a less developed area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Materials and methods Study design and establishing This seroepidemiologic cross-sectional study was conducted in the Bacha Khan Medical Complex (BKMC) Shahmansoor and Area Head Quarter (DHQ) Hospital Swabi which are facilitated with 40 and 20 mattresses of Antenatal Care (ANC) respectively, for Gynecology and Obstetrics. Both the BKMC and DHQ Private hospitals are declared Teaching Private hospitals of Gajju Khan Medical College (GKMC) Swabi and are receiving approximately 60C90 and 30C60 pregnant women per day respectively, from the surrounding urban and rural areas of Area Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan. Resource population All pregnant women attending hospital maternity wards for antenatal care at Bacha Khan Medical Complex (BKMC) Shahmansoor and Area Head Quarter (DHQ) Hospital Swabi from surrounding urban and rural areas of area Swabi were the source population. Study human population All pregnant women attending hospital maternity wards for antenatal care at Bacha Khan Medical Complex (BKMC) Shahmansoor and Area Head Quarter (DHQ) Hospital Swabi from surrounding urban and rural areas of area Swabi during July 2019 -January 2020 were the study human population. Sample size and sampling technique A sample size of 375 pregnant women (200 from BKMC Shahmansoor and 175 from DHQ Hospital Swabi) was determined based on 95% confidence level, 0.05 margins of error, and 10.5% of HBV and HCV seroprevalence. All the participants were recruited using systematic random sampling technique. Inclusion and exclusion criteria The pregnant mothers whose pregnancy was confirmed by an ultrasound scan were included in study. Pregnant mothers who have Capn3 been critically ill and unable to solution the questionnaire during data collection were excluded from study. Study variables Dependent variables Seroprevalence of HBV and HCV. Indie variables History of sexually transmitted disease (STD), tattooing on body, dental care extraction, abortion, shaving eyebrow, ex-delivery at health facility, surgical procedure, hospital admission, receiving blood transfusion, history of visiting abroad, maternal age,.