title: Is there any association between hepatitis G virus (HGV), other hepatitis viruses (HBV, HCV) and Behçet's disease?
abstract: Infectious agents, especially viruses, have been implicated in the pathogenesis of Behçet's disease (BD). The aim of this study was to determine whether BD is associated with hepatitis viruses. In this study, the serological markers of hepatitis (HBsAg, anti-HBs, anti-HBc and anti-HCV) and viral nucleic acid (HGV-RNA) were studied in the sera of 35 patients, all of whom fulfilled the diagnostic criteria of the International Study Group for BD, and the results were compared with those of 36 healthy controls. The prevalences of HBsAg, anti-HBs, anti-HBc in BD patients were 2.9%, 45.7%, and 31.4%, respectively, which were not significantly different from those in healthy controls. None of the subjects in either group were found to be positive for anti-HCV. HGV-RNA was detected in two patients with BD and in none of the healthy controls. In conclusion, BD does not seem to be associated with hepatitis viral infections including hepatitis B, C, or G.
authors.affiliation: Dokuz Eylül University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Dermatology, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Sebnem
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ozkan
authors.forename: Tuncer
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Toklu
authors.forename: Turna
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ilknur
authors.forename: Hakan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Abacioğlu
authors.forename: M Cüneyt
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Soyal
authors.forename: Ali Tahsin
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Güneş
mesh_terms: D001528:Behcet Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000821:virology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D018178:Flaviviridae Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D029407:GB virus C / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D011336:Probability; D012016:Reference Values; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral