title: Why most patients with hepatitis delta virus infection are seronegative for hepatitis B e antigen. A prospective controlled study.
abstract: A prospective age/sex matched control and follow-up study was conducted to explore the reason(s) for the association of hepatitis delta virus (HDV) infection with hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) negative hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) carrier state. Over a 3-year period, a total of 110 patients (104 males and six females) with acute HDV superinfection were documented in our unit. Twenty-four (21.8%) of them were HBeAg positive at the onset of acute HDV infection. In the control study, 110 age- and sex-matched asymptomatic HBsAg carriers with normal serum transaminase, as well as 110 age- and sex-matched patients with chronic type B hepatitis were randomly selected from the computer files of the same 3-year period of entry. The prevalence of serum HBeAg in patients with HDV infection was similar to that of asymptomatic HBsAg carriers (20.9%), but significantly lower than that of the patients with chronic type B hepatitis (72.7%). In a follow-up study of 16 HBeAg-positive patients with HDV infection, eight (50%) cleared HBeAg and three (18.8%) seroconverted to anti-HBe within 3 months. The HBeAg clearance rate was significantly higher than for chronic type B hepatitis and asymptomatic carriers (p less than 0.01). The results suggest that the low prevalence of serum HBeAg in HDV infection simply reflects the HBeAg/anti-HBe status of the asymptomatic HBsAg carriers in the population under study. Also in some patients HDV superinfection may itself suppress HBV and thus clear HBeAg.
authors.affiliation: Liver Unit, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Y F
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Liaw
authors.forename: J T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.forename: K W
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Chiu
authors.forename: I S
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Sheen
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Chu
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens / Q000032:analysis*; D003699:Hepatitis D / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012698:Serologic Tests; D012737:Sex Factors
chemical_list: D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens