[Nine-year follow-up of hepatitis C virus infection in a rural area of Hebei province, China].
OBJECTIVE
To investigate natural history of hepatitis C virus infection and related factors among plasma donors in China.


METHODS
172 plasma donors in a rural area of Hebei province had been diagnosed as HCV infection in 1993. No antiviral treatment was applied to them during the period of infection. In the present study, we investigated the outcome of HCV infection nine years later and related factors affecting the outcome. In fact, only 142 cases were followed up in the investigation. The mean age of 142 cases of blood donors was 46 +/- 9 and the mean age of infection was 37 +/- 9 years old.


RESULTS
After nine-year follow-up, 1.2% died of end-stage liver disease. 130 (91.6%) of 142 cases under investigation were still positive for HCV RNA or anti-HCV in their blood and 12 cases (8.4%) were negative for both HCV RNA and anti-HCV. 3.1% developed liver cirrhosis among the patients with persistent infection. The mean level of ALT, AST, GGT among HCV RNA positive cases were significantly higher than that of HCV RNA negative cases (P < 0.001). The abnormal rates of ALT and/or AST in male patients were significantly higher than those of female patients (P = 0.005). The rate of progression to liver cirrhosis from chronic hepatitis C virus was significantly higher in patients co-infected with HCV/HBV than that of the cases of single HCV infection.


CONCLUSIONS
Higher chronic rate was observed in this research. Superinfection of HBV/HCV may have worse clinical outcomes.
Fan
Wen-mei
WM
Department of Pathogen, Basic Medical College, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100083, China.
Zhu
Wan-fu
WF
Zhang
Shi-yong
SY
Wang
Qi-xin
QX
Yin
Li-min
LM
Wan
Hua
H
Gao
Yan
Y
Tian
Xiu-lan
XL
Yu
Min
M
Jin
Jian
J
Xu
Xiao-yuan
XY
Wei
Lai
L
Zhuang
Hui
H
D000328:Adult; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D001782:Blood Donors; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002681:China; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012424:Rural Population
D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D012367:RNA, Viral