title: Diagnostic value of anti-HBc IgM in high HBV prevalence areas.
abstract: The diagnostic value of an anti-mu-capture immunoassay for the detection of IgM antibody against hepatitis B core antigen (anti-HBc) was evaluated. Strongly positive results were obtained from the acute phase sera of the 25 acute hepatitis B patients who were hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positive and of the 18 confirmed acute hepatitis B patients who had already cleared HBsAg when symptoms developed. Negative results were obtained in 5 hepatitis A patients, 20 non-A, non-B acute hepatitis patients serologically susceptible to HBV, 22 patients with chronic hepatitis B liver disease, 15 asymptomatic HBsAg carriers, and 10 healthy patients immune from past HBV infection. Fourteen of the acute hepatitis patients remained HBsAg positive for a follow-up period of at least 6 months, and 12 of these were found consistently anti-HBc IgM negative. These were considered as chronic HBsAg carriers with a superimposed form of acute liver injury. These data show that this assay can differentiate between acute from chronic (HBsAg positive) and recent from old (HBsAg negative) hepatitis B virus infection. Thus, it should be very useful in the complex diagnostic situations encountered commonly in areas with high prevalence of HBV infections.
mesh_terms: D002353:Carrier State / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006115:Greece; D006506:Hepatitis A / Q000276:immunology; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000032:analysis*; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens / Q000276:immunology*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000276:immunology; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens; D007075:Immunoglobulin M