title: e Antigen and antibody in outbreaks of hepatitis B in two renal dialysis units.
abstract: In two renal dialysis units which had outbreaks of hepatitis B, patients were studied for the presence of e antigen and antibody. In one unit, in which the illness was mild and most of the patients (78%) became carriers of HBsAg, all but one patient had e antigen. Most of the HBsAg carriers had persisting e antigen and most of the transient patients had also transient e antigen. In the other unit, in which the illness was more severe, none of the patients became a carrier. Only 30% had e antigen during the acute phase of illness and 40% developed anti-e just before clearing HBsAg. It seems possible that the difference between these two units may reflect strain differences in the infectivity of hepatitis B virus.
mesh_terms: D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000032:analysis*; D002353:Carrier State / Q000276:immunology; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000276:immunology*; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000032:analysis*; D006511:Hepatitis B Antigens / Q000032:analysis*; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000032:analysis; D006757:Hospital Units; D006801:Humans; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D006113:United Kingdom
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D006511:Hepatitis B Antigens; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens