ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Occult HBV infection (OBI) is a specific form of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and has the possibility of developing into hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in adults. This study aimed to estimate the global prevalence of occult HBV infection in children and adolescents. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane databases for relevant studies on the prevalence of OBI in children and adolescents. Meta-analysis was performed using STATA 16 software. RESULTS: Fifty studies were included. The overall prevalence of OBI in children and adolescents was 7.5% (95% CI: 0.050-0.103). In different risk populations, OBI prevalence was remarkably high in the HIV-infected population (24.2%, 95% CI: 0.000-0.788). The OBI prevalence was 0.8% (95% CI:0.000-0.029) in the healthy population, 3.8% (95% CI:0.012-0.074) in the general population, and 6.4% (95% CI: 0.021-0.124) in children born to HBsAg-positive mothers. Based on different serological profiles, the prevalence of OBI in HBsAg-negative and anti-HBc-positive patients was 6.6% (95% CI: 0.016-0.136), 3.0% (95% CI: 0.009-0.059) in HBsAg-negative and anti-HBc-negative patients, 4.6% (95% CI: 0.015-0.088) in HBsAg-negative and anti-HBs-positive patients, and 3.7% (95% CI: 0.001-0.102) in HBsAg-negative and anti-HBs-negative patients. CONCLUSIONS: Despite HBV vaccination and hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG), OBI is common in children and adolescents in high-risk groups.
Subject(s)
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular , Hepatitis B , Liver Neoplasms , Adolescent , Child , Humans , DNA, Viral , Hepatitis B/diagnosis , Hepatitis B/epidemiology , Hepatitis B Antibodies , Hepatitis B Surface Antigens , Hepatitis B virus/genetics , Liver Neoplasms/epidemiology , PrevalenceABSTRACT
Tri-allelic patterns can occasionally be observed during the profiling of short tandem repeats (STRs) in routine forensic practice. In previous studies, the Type 2 tri-allelic pattern at TPOX has been widely studied in African and Brazilian populations. In this study, we investigated the incidence, rearrangement, and inheritance of the Type 2 tri-allelic pattern at the TPOX locus in a Chinese Han population. The frequency of the Type 2 pattern at TPOX was approximately 0.0189%, and the major extra allele was allele 11 in the Chinese Han population. Two major allelic combinations, 8/11 and 11/12, were observed, which are different from the configuration of that in both African and Brazilian populations. Tight linkage between alleles 11 and 12 was observed in the majority of the Type 2 pattern at TPOX in the Chinese Han population, while the location of the extra copy on chromosome 2 was validated, which shows an identical ancestral origin. The excess allelic combination 8/11 implies a homogeneous origin and tight linkage relationship. However, the rearrangement in the Type 2 pattern with the 8/11 allelic combination remained unknown. Altogether, these results show the configuration of the Type 2 tri-allelic pattern at the TPOX locus in the Chinese Han population, which will assist in the understanding of the Type 2 tri-allelic pattern at the TPOX locus in the global population.