title: Hepatitis G virus infection in intravenous drug users with or without human immunodeficiency virus infection.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the HGV infection prevalence in a group of intravenous drug users with or without human immunodeficiency virus coinfection.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied 57 patients (48 males and 9 females) who were either previous or still ongoing intravenous drug users. Thirty-seven patients were HIV+ve, 55 patients were anti-HCV+ve and 3 patients were HBsAg chronic carriers. Patient sera were tested for HGV-RNA, anti-E2, qualitative and quantitative HCV-RNA as well as for HCV genotypes. Moreover, the ALT level was checked in the serum sample of each patient.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found a high prevalence (35/57; 61.4%) of HGV infection in our patients. HGV-RNA was detected in 16 out of the 57 intravenous drug users (28%). In particular HGV-RNA was positive in 12 out of the 37 HIV+ve patients (32.4%) and in 4 out of the 20 HIV-ve patients (20%). Anti-E2 were detected in 19 out of the 57 patients (33.3%) with greater prevalence among HIV-ve subjects (12/20; 60%) compared to HIV+ve group (7/37; 18.9%). This resulting difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). All HGV-RNA+ve/anti-E2+ve patients were anti-HCV/HCV-RNA+ve and none of our patients were anti-E2+ve/HGV-RNA+ve at the same time. Significant differences were not found between HGV-RNA+ve and HGV-RNA-ve patients as far as clinical and virological data are concerned.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of HGV infection in intravenous drug users proved to be high especially in the HIV+ve group. Moreover HGV was associated with HCV in all our cases. The actual clinical impact of HGV infection remains unclear since HGV does not seems to influence the biochemical, virological or histological alterations caused by HCV infection.
authors: Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa, Italy.
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Campo
authors: R
authors: R
authors: Brizzolara
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Sinelli
authors: F
authors: F
authors: Puppo
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Campelli
authors: F
authors: F
authors: Indiveri
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Picciotto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D018067:Flaviviridae; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications*; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous
chemical_list: D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D012367:RNA, Viral