[New viral hepatitis].
Viral hepatitis are essentially caused by 5 types of viruses which differ in way of transmission and their evolution to chronicity or not. Like the virus causing hepatitis A, the E-virus-discovered en 1983-is a virus with oral-fecal transmission, responsible only for acute hepatitis which may be fulminant, notably in pregnant woman. Responsible for epidemics in Asia and Africa, the E-virus is nearly non-existent in our regions. Just like the B, C and D viruses, the G-virus is a RNA-virus with intravenous transmission. Notwithstanding a high prevalence, its pathogenic role remains hypothetical so that some hesitate to consider it as a virus causing clinical hepatitis. Etiological viral or non-viral agents for the cryptogenic hepatitis which can appear as acute, fulminant, post-transfusional or chronic illness, remain to be discovered.
Van Gossum
M
M
Service de gastro-entérologie, Centre Hospitalier César De Paepe, Bruxelles.
Bourgeois
V
V
D000208:Acute Disease; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D015995:Prevalence