Prevalence of occult hepatitis B virus infection

Occult hepatitis B virus(HBV) infection(OBI) is characterized by the persistence of HBV DNA in the liver tissue in individuals negative for the HBV surface antigen.The prevalence of OBI is quite variable depending on the level of endemic disease in different parts of the world,the different assays utilized in the studies,and the different populations studied.Many studies have been carried out on OBI prevalence in different areas of the world and categories of individuals.The studies show that OBI prevalence seems to be higher among subjects at high risk for HBV infection and with liver disease than among individuals at low risk of infection and without liver disease.

Clinical impact of occult hepatitis B virus infection in immunosuppressed patients

Occult hepatitis B infection(OBI), is characterized by low level hepatitis B virus(HBV) DNA in circulating blood and/or liver tissue. In clinical practice the presence of antibody to hepatitis B core antigen in hepatitis B surface antigen(HBsAg)-/anti-HBs-negative subjects is considered indicative of OBI. OBI is mostly observed in the window period of acute HBV infection in blood donors and in recipients of blood and blood products, in hepatitis C virus chronic carriers, in patients under pharmacological immunosuppression, and in those with immunodepression due to HIV infection or cancer. Reactivation of OBI mostly occurs in anti-HIV-positive subjects, in patients treated with immunosuppressive therapy in onco-hematological settings, in patients who undergo hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, in those treated with anti-CD20 or anti-CD52 monoclonal antibody, or anti-tumor necrosis factors antibody for rheumatological diseases, or chemotherapy for solid tumors. Under these conditions the mortality rate for hepatic failure or progression of the underlying disease due to discontinuation of specific treatment can reach 20%. For patients with OBI, prophylaxis with nucleot(s)ide analogues should be based on the HBV serological markers, the underlying diseases and the type of immunosuppressive treatment. Lamivudine prophylaxis is indicated in hemopoietic stem cell transplantation and in onco-hematological diseases when high dose corticosteroids and rituximab are used; monitoring may be indicated when rituximab-sparing schedules are used, but early treatment should be applied as soon as HBsAg becomes detectable. This review article presents an up-to-date evaluation of the current knowledge on OBI.

Influence of occult hepatitis B virus infection in chronic hepatitis C outcomes

Persistence of hepatitis B virus-DNA in the sera,peripheral blood mononuclear cells or in the liver of hepatitis B surface antigen(HBsAg) -negative patients with or without serological markers of previous exposure(antibodies to HBsAg and/or to HB-core antigen) defines the entity called occult hepatitis B infection(OBI).Co-infection with hepatitis B and hepatitis C viruses is frequent in highly endemic areas.While this co-infection increases the risk of liver disease progression,development of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma and also increases the rate of therapeutic failure to interferon-based treatments than either virus alone,a potentially negative effect of OBI on clinical outcomes and of therapeutic response to current antiviral regimes of patients with chronic hepatitis C remains inconclusive.

Occult hepatitis B virus infection in Egypt

The emerging evidence of the potentially clinical importance of occult hepatitis B virus(HBV) infection(OBI) increases the interest in this topic. OBI may impact in several clinical contexts, which include the possible transmission of the infection, the contribution to liver disease progression, the development of hepatocellular carcinoma, and the risk of reactivation. There are several articles that have published on OBI in Egyptian populations. A review of MEDLINE database was undertaken for relevant articles to clarify the epidemiology of OBI in Egypt. HBV genotype D is the only detectable genotype among Egyptian OBI patients. Higher rates of OBI reported among Egyptian chronic HCV, hemodialysis, children with malignant disorders, and cryptogenic liver disease patients. There is an evidence of OBI reactivation after treatment with chemotherapy. The available data suggested that screening for OBI must be a routine practice in these groups of patients. Further studies needed for better understand of the epidemiology of OBI among Egyptian young generations after the era of hepatitis B vaccination.

Occult hepatitis B virus co-infection in human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients: A review of prevalence, diagnosis and clinical significance

The prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus(HIV) and hepatitis B virus(HBV) co-infection is high as they share similar mechanisms of transmission. The development and widespread use of highly sensitive tests for HBV diagnosis has demonstrated that a significant proportion of apparently healthy individuals with evidence of exposure to HBV continue to carry fully functional HBV DNA in their hepatocytes, a situation that predisposes them to the development of progressive liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma. The presence of co-infections frequently influences the natural evolution of each of the participating infections present by either facilitating their virulence or competing for resources. Furthermore, the drugs used to treat these infections may also contribute to changes in the natural course of these infections, making the analysis of the impact of co-infection more difficult. The majority of studies has examined the impact of HIV on overt chronic hepatitis B, finding that co-infection carries an increased risk of progressive liver disease and the development of hepatocellular carcinoma. Although the effect of HIV on the natural history of occult hepatitis B infection(OBI) has not been fully assessed, all available data suggest a persisting risk of repeated flares of hepatitis and progressive liver disease. We describe studies regarding the diagnosis, prevalence and clinical significance of OBI in HIVpositive patients in this short review. Discrepancies in worldwide prevalence show the urgent need for the standardization of diagnostic criteria, as established by the Taormina statements. Ideally, standardized protocols for testing should be employed to enable the comparison of data from different groups. Additional studies are needed to define the differences in risk for OBI without HIV and in HIV-HBV co-infected patients with or without overt disease.

Occult hepatitis B virus infection and surgical outcomes in non-B, non-C patients with curative resection for hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM To investigate the prevalence, clinicopathological characteristics and surgical outcomes of occult hepatitis B virus(HBV) infection(OBI) in patients with non-B, non-C(NBNC) hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC).METHODS This study retrospectively examined the cases of 78 NBNC patients with curative resection for HCC for whom DNA could be extracted from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue. OBI was determined by the HBV-DNA amplification of at least two different sets of primers by TaqM an realtime polymerase chain reaction. Possibly carcinogenetic factors such as alcohol abuse, diabetes mellitus, obesity and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis(NASH) were examined. Surgical outcomes were evaluated according to diseasefree survival(DFS), overall survival(OS) and diseasespecific survival(DSS).RESULTS OBI was found in 27/78 patients(34.6%) with NBNC HCC. The OBI patients were significantly younger than the non-OBI cases at the time of surgery(average age 63.0 vs 68.1, P = 0.0334) and the OBI cases overlapped with other etiologies significantly more frequently compared to the non-OBI cases(P = 0.0057). OBI had no impact on the DFS, OS or DSS. Only tumorrelated factors affected these surgical outcomes.CONCLUSION Our findings indicate that OBI had no impact on surgical outcomes. The surgical outcomes of NBNC HCC depend on early tumor detection; this reconfirms the importance of a periodic medical examination for individuals who have NBNC HCC risk factors.

Significant increase in HBV, HCV, HIV and syphilis infections among blood donors in West Bengal, Eastern India 2004-2005: Exploratory screening reveals high frequency of occult HBV infection

AIM: To evaluate the prevalence of markers of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) among blood donors in Kolkata, Eastern India for two consecutive years and to conduct a pilot study to explore the presence of HBV DNA among hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) negative but anti-HBc positive blood donors. METHODS: Seroprevalence of HBsAg, anti-HCV and anti-HIV was studied among 113 051 and 106 695 voluntary blood donors screened in 2004 and 2005, respectively. Moreover, a pilot study on 1027 HBsAg negative donors was carried out for evaluating the presence of HBV DNA by PCR on HBsAg negative/anti- HBc positive donors. RESULTS: A statistically significant increase in the prevalence of HBV (1448 vs 1768, P < 0.001), HIV (262 vs 374, P < 0.001), HCV (314 vs 372, P = 0.003) and syphilis (772 vs 853, P = 0.001) infections was noted among blood donors of Kolkata West Bengal in 2005 as compared to 2004. Moreover, the exploratory study on 1027 HBsAg negative donors revealed that 188 (18.3%)of them were anti-HBc positive out of which 21% were positive for HBV DNA. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study underscore the significantly increasing endemicity of hepatitis viruses, syphilis and HIV among the voluntary blood donors of our community. The pilot study indicates a high rate of prevalence of HBV DNA among HBsAg negative/anti-HBc positive donors and thus emphasizes the need for a more sensitive and stringent screening algorithm for blood donations.

A mutation of the start codon in the X region of hepatitis B virus DNA in a patient with non-B,non-C chronic hepatitis

There are cases of hepatitis involving occult hepatitis B virus(HBV)infection in which,even though the HB surface antigen(HBsAg)is negative,HBV-DNA is detected by a polymerase chain reaction(PCR).We con-ducted a sequence analysis of the entire HBV region in a case of non-B non-C chronic hepatitis in a 46-yearold female.A diagnosis of non-B non-C chronic hepatitis was made.Although HBV markers,such as HBs antibody(anti-HBs),anti-HBc,HBeAg and anti-HBe,were negative,HBV-DNA was positive.Nested PCR was performed to amplify the precore region of HBV-DNA and all remaining regions by long nested PCR.Sequence analysis of the two obtained bands was conducted by direct sequencing.Compared with the control strains,the ATG(Methionine)start codon in the X region had mut ated to GTG(Valine).It is assumed that a mutation at the start codon in the X region may be the reason why HBV markers are negative in some cases of hepatitis that involve occult HBV infection.

无偿献血人群中HCV/OBI共感染者的分子流行病学特征

目的了解无偿献血人群丙型肝炎病毒(HCV)感染者中隐匿性乙肝感染(OBI)率,为进一步阐明HCV/OBI的作用机制提供科学依据。方法采用盖立复PROCLEIX TIGRIS、罗氏cobas s 201和罗氏E601等仪器对2011年1月—2015年7月广州无偿献血者中的933(人)份HCV感染者标本做HBV DNA和抗-HBc检测,比较HCV单纯感染者和HCV/OBI共感染者之间性别、年龄、民族和转氨酶的差异;巢式PCR扩增HCV/OBI共感染者HCV C区和S区,并构建进化树和基因分型,荧光定量PCR检测HCV和HBV的病毒载量;另外,随机选取同期本地HCV 6a基因型的44名单纯HCV感染者和16名HCV/HBV共感染者最为对照组,通过巢式PCR扩增各组HCV C区,并对3组对象的HCV核心蛋白氨基酸序列做比对分析。结果本组HCV感染的献血者标本中,有6(人)份HBV DNA和抗-HBc阳性,亦即OBI感染率为6.43‰(6/933);该6份HCV/OBI共感染标本的HCV基因型中6a占83.3%(5/6)、1b占16.7%(1/6),HCV病毒载量(log_(10)IU/mL)为3.8—5.7(5.0±0.69)。HCV单纯感染者和HCV/OBI共感染者的性别、年龄、民族、籍贯和ALT均无明显差异(P>0.05)。HCV单纯感染者、HCV/HBV共感染者和HCV/OBI共感染者HCV核心蛋白序列氨基酸变异数分别为0.8±1.3 vs 0.7±1.5 vs 0.4±0.5(P>0.05),没有在HCV/OBI共感染者中发现一致性的结构或突变规律。结论广州地区无偿献血人群HCV感染者中的OBI阳性率较高。

隐匿性HBV感染患者HBV C区变异的临床意义

目的研究隐匿性HBV感染(OBI)患者HBV C区变异的临床意义。方法回顾性分析我院2017年3月—2019年3月收治的80例OBI患者的临床资料,所有患者入院后(治疗前)2~3 d抽取清晨空腹静脉血7 mL检测乙型肝炎e抗原(HBeAg)、HBV DNA、核心抗体(抗-HBc)及HBV C区变异。分析HBeAg(+)与HBeAg(-)患者HBV C区变异情况,分析不同HBV DNA含量HBeAg(-)患者HBV C区变异情况,最后分析HBeAg(-)HBV C区变异患者抗-HBc(+)分布情况。结果80例OBI患者中HBeAg(+)55.00%,HBeAg(-)45.00%;其中HBeAg(-)组HBV C区变异率75.00%显著高于HBeAg(+)组34.09%,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。不同HBV-DNA含量HBeAg(-)患者HBV C区变异率分别为100.00%、78.95%、16.67%,各组间对比差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。27例HBeAg(-)HBV C区变异患者抗-HBc(+)率81.48%。结论OBI患者HBV C区变异与疾病的进展及预后密切相关,因此在OBI的诊疗工作中应当关注HBV C区变异情况。

Occult HBV infection status and its impact on surgical outcomes in patients with curative resection for HCV-associated hepatocellular carcinoma

Background:We sought to clarify the prevalence of occult hepatitis B virus(HBV)infection(OBI)and to determine whether OBI affects the surgical outcomes in curatively resected Japanese patients with hepatitis C virus(HCV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC).Methods:A total of 257 patients with HCV-related HCC who underwent curative surgical resection were enrolled.All enrolled patients were serologically negative for HBV surface antigen and positive for HCV antibody.DNA was extracted from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded liver tissue.OBI was determined by the HBV-DNA amplification of at least two different sets of primers by TaqMan real-time polymerase chain reaction.Surgical outcomes were evaluated according to overall survival(OS),disease-specific survival(DSS),and disease-free survival(DFS).Results:OBI was identified in 15 of the 257(5.8%)cases.In the multivariate analyses,the factors significantly correlated with OS were BMI>25(P=0.0416),portal vein invasion(P=0.0065),and multiple tumors(P=0.0064).The only factor significantly correlated with DSS was T-stage(P=0.0275).The factors significantly correlated with DFS were liver fibrosis(P=0.0017)and T-stage(P=0.0001).The status of OBI did not show any significant correlation with OS,DSS or DFS,but a weak association with DSS(P=0.0603)was observed.Conclusions:The prevalence of OBI was 5.8%in 257 cases of HCV-related HCC.Although a weak association between DSS and OBI was observed,and statistical analyses were limited by small number of OBI cases,no significant correlation between OBI and surgical outcomes was detected.

隐匿性乙型肝炎病毒感染者临床特点和肝组织病理学检查

目的了解血清肝炎病毒标志物阴性、肝功能反复异常患者中HBV隐匿性感染的比例及其临床和病理学特点。方法对27例血清肝炎病毒标志物阴性、肝功能反复异常患者采用免疫组化法检测肝组织HBsAg、HBcAg和HCVAg,并进行常规的病理学检查。结果肝组织HBsAg和(或)HBcAg阳性9例(33.3%);HBsAg和(或)HBcAg及HCVAg阳性10例(37.0%);全阴性8例(29.6%)。在HBV隐匿性感染的19例患者中,慢性肝炎8例,肝硬化11例。结论HBV和HCV感染为血清肝炎病毒标志物阴性患者肝功能反复异常的主要原因之一,尤其是HBV感染。这种HBV隐匿性感染与慢性肝炎、肝硬化的发生关系密切,应引起重视。