ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the status of occult hepatitis B virus infection in chronic viral hepatitis patients with non-A to E hepatitis virus infection and explore the diagnostic value of fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (FQ-PCR) technique for occult hepatitis B virus infection.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The amount of HBV-DNA in serum and liver tissue from 57 patients with non-A to E hepatitis virus infection who were diagnosed as chronic viral hepatitis by Menghini method liver biopsy were detected by using FQ-PCR technique, then the relation between the viral load of HBV DNA in liver tissue and hepatic inflammatory activity were analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Thirteen (22.81%), 22 (38.60%) patients were positive for HBV DNA in serum and liver tissue, respectively. The positive rate and the level of HBV DNA quantity in liver tissue were significantly higher than those in serum; HBV DNA was found positive in both serum and liver tissue in 13 cases, negative in both serum and liver tissue in 35, positive in liver tissue but negative in serum in 9, and in none of the cases HBV DNA was positive in serum but negative in liver tissue (P < 0.01). The logarithmic value of HBV DNA from 13 patients in liver tissue and in serum was respectively: (6.62 +/- 1.21) copies/g vs.(4.03 +/- 1.06) copies/ml, P < 0.01. The hepatic lesions of all HBV DNA positive patients were active pathologic changes, but the level of HBV DNA in liver tissue was not significantly correlated with the grade of hepatic inflammation activity (P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Occult HBV infection is the etiology of part of the chronic viral hepatitis patients with non-A-E hepatitis virus infection. Missed diagnosis will occur if diagnosis of hepatitis B is only based on detection of serum HBV markers. It is useful for improvement of the diagnostic level of HBV infection via detection of HBV DNA quantitatively in serum especially in liver tissue of chronic viral hepatitis patients with non-A-E hepatitis virus infection by using FQ-PCR technique. The chronic viral hepatitis patients with occult HBV infection should be also given effective anti-viral therapy.</p>
Subject(s)
Humans , Carrier State , DNA, Viral , Hepatitis B , Hepatitis B Surface Antigens , Allergy and Immunology , Hepatitis B virus , Physiology , Hepatitis C , Hepatitis D , Hepatitis E , Hepatitis, Viral, HumanABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the effect of hepatitis C virus (HCV) superinfection on the short-term and long-term hepatic pathological changes in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>HCV-RNA of twice corresponding period serum samples was detected via reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assay from 230 patients with CHB for whom liver biopsy was performed at an interval of 0.5-15 years, respectively. The hepatic pathological changes of the patients with CHB who were serum HCV-RNA positive at the beginning of observation and persistently positive between the starting and ending of observation were respectively compared with those of serum HCV-RNA negative and persistently negative patients.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>41 patients (17.83%) were positive for serum HCV-RNA at the beginning of observation. There were significant differences in the severity of hepatic inflammatory activity grade and fibrosis stage between serum HCV-RNA positive and negative patients with CHB (P < 0.05). Twenty-nine patients were persistently positive for serum HCV-RNA in the beginning and end of observation. Compared with persistently negative patients who were 116 patients selected from the above-mentioned 230 patients and they were comparable with HCV-RNA persistently positive patients in mean follow-up time, age and sex, the long-term progression of hepatic inflammatory activity grade and fibrosis stage in persistently positive patients were more speedy (P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>HCV superinfection worsens the hepatic pathological changes of patients with CHB and speeds up its progression.</p>