HEPATITIS

FREQUENCY OF HEPATITIS D CO & SUPER INFECTION IN HEPATITIS B PATIENTS

Abstract

Objective: To determine the frequency of co/super infection of hepatitis D in patients with hepatitis B related liver disorders. Study Design: Descriptive study. Place and Duration of Study: The hepatitis Centre Ghulam Mohammad Mahar Medical College Hospitals Sukkur & Khairpur, from January 2009 to December 2009. Methodology: All patient registered for HBV associated infections were selected. Blood was drawn from 200 patients who fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Those with an incomplete test profile were excluded. All clinical conditions were investigated through liver function tests, coagulation profile, abdominal ultrasonography, upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and liver biopsy. Liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) were diagnosed either on the basis of histology, or on a combination of radiological, endoscopic and laboratory data. Hepatitis B virus DNA was extracted from serum by real time PCR. Descriptive statistics were used for frequency and mean determination. Results: The 129 patients finally selected for statistical analysis included 108 (84%) males and 21 (16%) females. The ages ranged from 6-68 years (mean=31.5 ± 12.39 years). There were 70 (54.2%) patients of non-cirrhotic, chronic hepatitis (CLD), 38 (29.4%) carriers, 12 (9.3%) cirrhotic and 9 (6.9%) hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. Among the 129 patients, 45 (34.9%) were positive for double infection with HDV. These included 35 CLD cases, 7 cirrhotic and 3 carriers. Conclusions: The frequency of co/super infection of hepatitis D was found to be highest in HBV cirrhosis patients compared to patients having chronic liver disease (non-cirrhotics) and carriers.