title: Contribution of hepatitis C virus to the progression of alcoholic liver disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We determined hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody, HCV RNA, and genotype in patients with alcoholic liver disease and studied the involvement of HCV in alcoholic liver disease. Additionally, we used the histological activity index (HAI) to study the influence of HCV on the severity of inflammation.
  
  
  METHODS
  The subjects were 143 patients with alcoholic liver disease: 7 with fatty liver (FL), 18 with hepatic fibrosis (HF), 24 with alcoholic hepatitis (ALH), 39 with chronic hepatitis (CH), 42 with liver cirrhosis (LC), and 13 with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The HCV RNA positivity rate in each type of disease was 0/7 (0%), 1/18 (6%), 2/24 (8%), 27/39 (69%), 24/42 (57%), and 7/13 (54%), respectively. It was high in the advanced hepatic lesions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Clinically, the serum hepatic function tests after abstinence from drinking improved significantly in the HCV RNA negative patients compared with the positive patients. The proportion of genotype II in each type of disease was 0/0, 0/1 (0%), 1/2 (50%), 18/27 (67%), 18/24 (75%), and 7/7 (100%), respectively. It became high with the advance of pathophysiology. The HCV RNA amount stood at 7.5 +/- 0.4 [log (copies/ml)] in CH, 7.9 +/- 0.4 in LC, and 8.4 +/- 0.8 in HCC, with a statistically significant difference between CH and HCC. However, we found no changes in the HCV RNA amount due to abstinence from drinking. The HAI score was high in the HCV RNA positive patients, but several cases in the HCV RNA negative group showed severe inflammatory changes. Therefore, judging the presence or absence of HCV RNA with the HAI score alone was considered difficult.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results suggest that HCV, particularly genotype II, plays an important role in the advance of disease to LC and HCC in heavy drinkers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Osaka City University Medical School, Osaka, Japan.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yabusako
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yamashita
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kondo
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nishiguchi
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kuroki
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Monna
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000209:etiology / Q000821:virology; D000431:Ethanol / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000503:physiopathology*; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008108:Liver Diseases, Alcoholic / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000821:virology*; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology / Q000821:virology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D012367:RNA, Viral; D000431:Ethanol