PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Celen, Mustafa K.
AU  - Ayaz, Celal
AU  - Hosoglu, Salih
AU  - Geyik, Mehmet F.
AU  - Ulug, Mehmet
TI  - Anti-hepatitis delta virus seroprevalence and risk factors in patients with hepatitis B in Southeast Turkey
DP  - 2006 May 01
TA  - Saudi Medical Journal
PG  - 617--620
VI  - 27
IP  - 5
4099  - http://smj.org.sa/content/27/5/617.short
4100  - http://smj.org.sa/content/27/5/617.full
SO  - Saudi Med J2006 May 01; 27
AB  - OBJECTIVE: To obtain regional epidemiological data on hepatitis delta virus (HDV, a defective virus) infections, the incidence of anti-HDV positivity and the associated risk factors in asymptomatic hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg) carriers and in patients with chronic active hepatitis B.METHODS: The study took place at Dicle University Hospital (Diyarbakir, Southeast of Turkey) between January 2002 and July 2004. Anti-HDV screening was performed in asymptomatic hepatitis B carriers (N=889) and in patients with chronic active hepatitis B infection (N=120). We explored the association between anti-HDV positivity and asymptomatic hepatitis B carrier status, presence of active hepatitis B, age, gender, the durations of HBsAg positivity and hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) positivity.RESULTS: In 6% of asymptomatic hepatitis B carriers (53/889) and in 27.5% of patients with chronic active hepatitis B (33/120) anti-HDV was positive. The incidence of anti-HDV positivity was significantly higher in patients with chronic active hepatitis B compared with asymptomatic carriers (p<0.001). A significant association between the duration of HBsAg carrier status (3.2 ± 1.4 years) and anti-HDV positivity was also found (p<0.001). Age, gender, and HBeAg positivity were not significantly associated with anti-HDV positivity (p>0.05).CONCLUSION: Anti-HDV positivity was significantly more common in patients with chronic hepatitis B compared with asymptomatic hepatitis B virus (HBV) carriers in a region with a high prevalence of HBV infection. We found a significant relationship between the duration of HBsAg carrier status and anti-HDV positively, however, age, gender, and presence of HBeAg were not significantly associated with the development of anti-HDV positivity.