title: Prevalence of occult hepatitis B virus infection in haemodialysis patients from central Greece.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the hepatitis B virus (HBV)-DNA and the prevalence of occult HBV infection in end-stage renal failure (ESRF) patients from Central Greece.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sera from 366 ESRF patients attending five out of six dialysis units from Central Greece were investigated for HBV-DNA by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Only serum samples with repeatedly detectable HBV-DNA were considered positive. IgG antibodies to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) were tested by a third generation enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), while IgG antibodies to hepatitis E virus (anti-HEV) were tested by two commercially available ELISAs.
  
  
  RESULTS
  HBV-DNA was detected in 15/366 patients (4.1%) and HBsAg in 20/366 (5.5%). The prevalence of occult HBV infection was 0.9% (3/346 HBsAg-negative patients). Occult HBV was not associated with a specific marker of HBV infection or anti-HCV or anti-HEV reactivity. There was no significant difference in HBV-DNA titres, demographic and biochemical features, between patients with occult HBV infection and those with HBsAg-positive chronic HBV infection.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In central Greece, 4% of ESRF patients had detectable HBV-DNA, though in this setting, the prevalence of occult HBV seems to be very low (0.9%).
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Research Laboratory of Internal Medicine, Medical School, University of Thessaly, 41110 Larissa, Thessaly, Greece.
authors.forename: Paraskevi
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mina
authors.forename: Sarah P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Georgiadou
authors.forename: Christos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rizos
authors.forename: George N
authors.initials: GN
authors.lastname: Dalekos
authors.forename: Eirini I
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Rigopoulou
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece / Q000453:epidemiology; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000097:blood / Q000628:therapy* / Q000821:virology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009780:Occult Blood; D015995:Prevalence; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral