Occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is defined as presence of HBV DNA in the liver regardless of serum HBV DNA detectability in HBsAg-negative patients. Occult HBV infection is not uncommon in Korea because the prevalence of occult HBV infection depends on the HBsAg carrier rate. The underlying mechanisms for occult HBV infection is not fully understood yet, but both viral and host factors...

BACKGROUND Reactivation of hepatitis B virus (HBV), characterized by increased levels of serum HBV DNA, abnormal liver function and hepatic failure, is a frequent complication of immunosuppressive therapy and chemotherapy in patients with HBV infection. However, reactivation of occult HBV infection with immunosuppressive therapy or chemotherapy is rare. CASE PRESENTATION A 77-year-old man was...

Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection combined with occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection has been associated with increased risk of hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of occult HBV infection among Egyptian chronic HCV patients, the genotype and occurrence of surface gene mutations of HBV and the impact of co-infection on early...

Occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections have been identified in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, although the clinical relevance of occult HBV infection remains controversial. We searched for serum HBV DNA in 106 HBsAg negative/anti-HBc positive patients with chronic HCV infection and in 150 blood donors HBsAg negative/anti-HBc positive/anti-HCV negative (control group...

background: in patients who are hepatitis b virus (hbv) dna-positive, but hbv surface antigen (hbsag) -negative, the infection is referred to as occult hepatitis b infection (obi). occult hbv infection is harmful when other liver diseases are present, and can aggravate liver damage in in patients with chronic liver diseases. in human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) infection the suppression of vir...

The hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of the most frequently transmitted agents in dialysis units. Occult hepatitis B is characterized by HBV infection without detectable surface antigen (HBsAg) in the patient's serum, a positive or negative HBV DNA marker result in the serum and a positive result in the liver tissue, which leads to the potential risk of transmission during renal replacement thera...

OBJECTIVE Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and HIV are endemic infections in many African countries. The objectives of this study were to determine the levels of exposure to, and protection from, HBV, as well as the prevalence of HIV/HBV co-infection and the response of HBV to highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) in a cross-section of HIV-infected patients in north-eastern South Africa. STUDY...

CONTEXT Occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) status (OHBS) is simply defined as the presence of HBV DNA in the liver (with or without detectable HBV DNA in the serum), in the absence of serum HBV surface antigen (HBsAg). Importance of OHBS is mostly clinical, related to its possible role in spreading through blood transfusion and liver transplantation; causing classic forms of HBV. Mechanisms underly...

BACKGROUND In countries with high rates of chronic HBV, the World Health Organization recommends screening all HIV-infected adults for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) before initiating antiretroviral therapy (ART), and starting HIV-HBV-coinfected patients on regimens containing lamivudine (3TC) or emtricitabine (FTC) plus tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF). Here, we estimated the prevalenc...

Occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection has been reported among patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Our aim was to evaluate the presence of occult HBV infection in patients with HCV-related liver cirrhosis (LC) with or without HCC in São Paulo, Brazil. Serum and liver tissue samples from 50 hepatitis B surface antigen-negative patients with HCV-r...