title: Acute sporadic hepatitis in Sudanese children.
abstract: Eighty consecutive cases of acute viral hepatitis and 80 controls selected from a public pediatric clinic were entered into a study of acute sporadic hepatitis in Khartoum, Sudan. Study subjects were 14 years of age or younger and were mainly from a low socioeconomic level. Non-A, non-B hepatitis was diagnosed by exclusion in 35 (43.8%) patients, hepatitis A in 27 (33.8%), acute hepatitis B in 8 (10.0%), possible Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) hepatitis in 1 patient; and dual hepatitis A and B infection in 1 patient. Eight acute cases were positive for HBsAg but negative for anti-HBc IgM and anti-HAV IgM. Delta hepatitis was not identified in any study subject. A household case of jaundice and acquaintance with an individual outside of the household with jaundice during the prior 6 months were associated with non-A, non-B hepatitis. There was no association between parenteral exposure and non-A, non-B hepatitis. These findings suggest that enterically transmitted non-A, non-B hepatitis may be a major cause of acute sporadic hepatitis in children in this area, as well as a cause of epidemic hepatitis.
authors.affiliation: U.S. Naval Medical Research Unit No. 3, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: K C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Hyams
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Hussain
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: al-Arabi
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: al-Huda Atallah
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: el-Tigani
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: McCarthy
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000032:analysis; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000209:etiology*; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000276:immunology; D007223:Infant; D007565:Jaundice / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors; D012923:Social Class; D013397:Sudan
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D007075:Immunoglobulin M