title: Relationship between hepatitis C virus infection and schistosomal liver disease: not simply an additive effect.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To study the association, clinical significance, and impact of hepatitis C virus (HCV) co-infection in patients with schistosomal liver disease (SLD).
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 240 patients with chronic liver diseases encountered consecutively were enrolled in the study. Fifty volunteer blood donors were enrolled as controls. HCV antibody determination (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay), qualitative and quantitative HCV RNA assay (reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction), and HCV genotyping (line probe assay) were performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty-eight patients had SLD alone, 60 had both SLD and chronic hepatitis C (CH-C), 120 had CH-C alone, and 32 had other liver diseases. The positivity rates for HCV antibody (76% vs 20%; P < 0.001) and HCV RNA (59% vs 10%; P < 0.001) were significantly higher in the patients with SLD (n = 88) than in the volunteer blood donors (n = 50). Complications of liver cirrhosis were more common in patients with concomitant SLD and CH-C than in those with either SLD or CH-C alone. The mean levels of alanine aminotransferase (77 +/- 42 vs 93 +/- 55 IU/l; P = 0.049) and HCV RNA concentrations (3.5 +/- 1.0 vs 4.2 +/- 1.0 log copy/ml; P < 0.001) were significantly lower in patients with concomitant SLD and CH-C than in those with CH-C alone. HCV genotype 4 predominated in both these groups (93% and 98%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  SLD in Egypt is significantly associated with HCV infection, with the predominance of genotype 4. Concurrent HCV infection and SLD result in much more severe liver disease than that seen with either disease alone. However, the activity of HCV infection seems to be partially suppressed in patients with SLD.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Shinshu University School of Medicine, Matsumoto, Japan.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gad
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Orii
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rokuhara
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Nooman
authors.forename: A H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Serwah
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shoair
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yoshizawa
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kiyosawa
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D000818:Animals; D001663:Bilirubin / Q000097:blood; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D006511:Hepatitis B Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000235:genetics; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D008109:Liver Diseases, Parasitic / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012547:Schistosoma / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012552:Schistosomiasis / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D012709:Serum Albumin / Q000032:analysis; D014463:Ultrasonography
chemical_list: D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D006511:Hepatitis B Antigens; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D012709:Serum Albumin; D000410:Alanine Transaminase; D001663:Bilirubin