title: The aetiology of acute viral hepatitis in the western region of Saudi Arabia.
abstract: Of the 1050 sera of acute viral hepatitis patients admitted to the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, over a one-year period, 40.9% were due to hepatitis A, 21.5% to hepatitis B, and 37.6% to non-A, non-B (NANB) hepatitis. The mean age for hepatitis A patients was 4 +/- 2.4 years, with no sex preponderance. The mean ages for hepatitis B and NANB were 26.1 +/- 11.9 and 28.8 +/- 14.2 years, respectively. A male to female ratio of 2:1 was noticed for both. 10% of HBsAg patients were positive for anti-delta. 32% of NANB cases were excluded on the bases of possessing specific IgM against cytomegalovirus (CMV), herpes simplex virus (HSV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) or Treponema pallidum. Only 9% of NANB cases had a history of blood transfusion. In conclusion, nearly all cases of acute jaundice in Saudi children are due to hepatitis A, whereas hepatitis B and NANB generally occur in adults. Other viruses such as CMV, HSV, and EBV are highly prevalent and must be excluded in all cases of NANB hepatitis.
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000145:classification / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012529:Saudi Arabia; D012737:Sex Factors