1. Liaw YF, Sheen IS, Chen TJ, Chu CM, Pao CC. Incidence determinants and significance of delayed clearance of serum HBsAg in chronic hepatitis B virus infection: a prospective study. Hepatology 1991;13:627-31. 2. Agarwal N, Naik S, Aggarwal R, Singh H, Somani SK, Kini D, et al. Occult hepatitis B virus infection as a cause of cirrhosis of liver in a region with intermediate endemicity. Indian ...

Occult hepatitis B infection (OBI) is defined as long-lasting persistence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA in the liver of patients with hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-negative status, with or without serological markers of previous exposure (antibodies to HBsAg and/or to hepatitis B core antigen). Over the past two decades, significant progress has been made in understanding OBI and its cli...

results the mean age of chb patients was 38.5± 11.9 years and 55.9% of them (231 patients) were male. there were 13 cases (3.1%) with hdv infection. there was no association between positive anti-hdv serology and factors such as age, gender, carrier state, liver enzymes, and positive hepatitis b e antigen (hbeag) serology. conclusions although hdv had a low prevalence in our area, it is importa...

BACKGROUND & AIMS Occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a well-recognized clinical entity characterized by the detection of HBV DNA in serum and/or liver in the absence of detectable hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). The frequency of the diagnosis depends on the relative sensitivity of both HBsAg and HBV DNA assays. We aimed at determining the prevalence of occult HBV infection in a hi...

INTRODUCTION Persistence of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) genome in individuals negative for the HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) reflects occult infection. The aim of this study was to identify occult HBV infection among hemodialysis patients at 5 clinics in Recife, State of Pernambuco, Brazil, between August 2006 and August 2007. METHODS Serum samples underwent enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to...

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the prevalence of occult hepatitis B viral infections (OBIs)  among blood donors considering the clinical and epidemiological importance of identifying OBIs. METHODS A cross-sectional study conducted at King Khalid University Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia between January 2011 and January 2012. Blood donors (n=8501) were screened for Hepatitis B virus surface antigen (H...

Hepatitis viral infection is hyperendemic in Egypt, western Asia and Africa. However, little is known about the status of hepatitis viruses among rural Egyptian children. Therefore, this study sought to examine the prevalence and characteristics of hepatitis viruses among symptomatic Egyptian children. Serological and molecular analyses of hepatitis viral infection were conducted in 33 children...

We read with great interest the article, “efficacy of hepatitis B vaccine in those who lost hepatitis B surface antigen during follow-up” by Taheri et al. published in Hepatitis Monthly (1). In this article, the authors assessed the efficacy of HBV vaccine in those who lost their HBsAg without seroconverssion to anti-HBs antibody with no detectable anti-HBs antibody and HBV DNA in their sera. T...

One hundred seven Chinese patients with primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC) were compared with 107 hospital controls for the presence of hepatitis B surface antigen and smoking, drinking, and dietary habits. Eighty-two % of PHC cases were hepatitis B surface antigen positive compared to 18% of controls (relative risk, 21.3; 95% confidence limits, 10.1 and 45.9). Prior history of jaundice was...

One hundred seven Chinese patients with primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC) were compared with 107 hospital controls for the presence of hepatitis B surface antigen and smoking, drinking, and dietary habits. Eighty-two % of PHC cases were hepatitis B surface antigen positive compared to 18% of controls (relative risk, 21.3; 95% confidence limits, 10.1 and 45.9). Prior history of jaundice was...