Hepatitis C virus infection and genotypes in Japanese hemophiliacs.
Liver function and antibodies to hepatitis C virus and to human immunodeficiency virus-1 were examined in 195 Japanese patients with hemophilia. One hundred and seventy-three were positive for antibody to HCV and 61 for antibody to human immunodeficiency virus-1. In 63 patients, we examined HCV genotypes according to the double polymerase chain reaction method. Forty cases (63%) were infected with hepatitis C virus with a single genotype, including type 1a in five, type 1b in 21, type 2a in seven and type 2b in seven; 16 (25%) were infected with double genotypes, including types 1a + 1b in 14, types 1b + 2a in one and types 1b+2b in one; and four (6%) were infected with triple genotypes, including types 1a + 1b + 2b in two. Genotype could not be determined in three patients by this method. In the 191 nonhemophiliac patients with chronic hepatitis C, HCV genotyping was as follows: type 1a in 0, type 1b in 121, type 2a in 40 and type 2b in 10 of 171 cases (89.5%) with single infection and types 1b + 2a in five and types 2a + 2b in one of six (5.5%) with double infection. In the remaining 14 patients, genotype could not be determined. Frequent transfusion of domestic and/or imported coagulation factor concentrates probably caused the high incidence of HCV infection with rare or mixed genotypes in Japanese hemophiliacs.
Isobe
K
K
Second Department of Internal Medicine, Nagoya University School of Medicine, Japan.
Imoto
M
M
Fukuda
Y
Y
Koyama
Y
Y
Nakano
I
I
Hayakawa
T
T
Takamatsu
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001483:Base Sequence; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005838:Genotype; D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D006467:Hemophilia A / Q000821:virology*; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics*; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000821:virology*; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008875:Middle Aged; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction
D015483:HIV Antibodies; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies