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Seroprevalence of antibody to hepatitis E virus among Chinese subjects in Taiwan
Author(s) -
Lee ShouDong,
Wang YuanJen,
Lu RueyHwa,
Chan ChoYu,
Lo KwangJuei,
Moeckli Randolph
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
hepatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.488
H-Index - 361
eISSN - 1527-3350
pISSN - 0270-9139
DOI - 10.1002/hep.1840190410
Subject(s) - medicine , hepatitis e virus , virology , hepatitis a , hepatitis , antibody , virus , hepatitis c virus , hepatitis b virus , subclinical infection , immunology , serology , biology , genotype , biochemistry , gene
Recently, with an available serological hepatitis E virus diagnostic kit, the prevalence of IgG antibody to hepatitis E virus among Chinese subjects in Taiwan was evaluated by means of a solid‐phase enzyme‐linked immunoassay based on two recombinant hepatitis E virus antigens. The overall prevalence of hepatitis E virus antibody was 10.7% among 384 healthy subjects older than 20 yr but only 0.3% among 600 school‐children and young adolescents younger than 20 yr (p < 0.0001). Serial serum samples from 32 hepatitis E virus antibody–positive healthy subjects showed 84% of them to have antibodies persisting more than 3 to 8 yr. Among patients with viral hepatitis, IgG hepatitis E virus antibody was detected in 10% of 10 patients with acute hepatitis A, in 9.5% of 63 patients with acute hepatitis B and in 13.9% of 36 patients with acute posttransfusion hepatitis C. Of 77 patients with sporadic non‐A, non‐B hepatitis, IgG hepatitis E virus antibody was detected in 18.9% of 53 patients positive for antibody to hepatitis C virus and in 45.8% of 24 patients negative for hepatitis C virus antibody (p < 0.03). Most of our hepatitis E virus antibody–positive normal subjects and patients had never been abroad. These findings demonstrate that sporadic or subclinical hepatitis E virus infections also exist among the Chinese subjects in Taiwan. Hepatitis E virus infection may play an important role in patients with hepatitis C virus antibody–negative sporadic non‐A, non‐B hepatitis. IgG hepatitis E virus antibody in the sera of normal subjects may last for more than 8 yr. (H EPATOLOGY 1994;19:866–870.)