Hepatitis G virus coinfection influences the liver histology of patients with chronic hepatitis C.
OBJECTIVE
The present investigation compared the histological features of the liver of chronic hepatitis C patients who are or are not coinfected with hepatitis G virus (HGV) to determine the histological and clinical characteristics of HGV infection.


METHODS
This study included 194 patients with chronic hepatitis C who visited our institution between 1993 and 1995. Detection of serum HGV RNA was performed by nested reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Scores were assigned to indicate the severity of each of the following features on the liver biopsy of a patient: inflammatory cell infiltration in the periportal, parenchymal, and portal area; fibrous stage; lymphoid aggregates in the portal area; portal sclerotic change; perivenular fibrosis; pericellular fibrosis; bile duct damage; bridging necrosis; and irregular regeneration of hepatocytes (IR).


RESULTS
HGV RNA was detected in the sera of 18 (9.3%) of the 194 patients. The histological features of the HGV RNA-positive patients show significantly more severe bile duct damage, perivenular fibrosis, pericellular fibrosis and IR than the liver of the HGV RNA-negative patients. The biochemical results in the two groups did not significantly differ.


CONCLUSIONS
Our data suggest that chronic HGV coinfection worsens the histological features of liver disease.
Moriyama
M
M
Third Department of Internal Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan. moriyama@med.nihon-u.ac.jp
Matsumura
H
H
Shimizu
T
T
Shioda
A
A
Kaneko
M
M
Saito
H
H
Miyazawa
K
K
Tanaka
N
N
Sugitani
M
M
Komiyama
K
K
Arakawa
Y
Y
D001652:Bile Ducts / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology; D001706:Biopsy; D005260:Female; D018067:Flaviviridae / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology*; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology*; D006651:Histocytochemistry; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology* / Q000821:virology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
D012367:RNA, Viral