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...

results oci has been reported in several high-risk groups, especially in hemodialysis patients and subjects with cryptogenic liver disease. furthermore, some studies have proposed a specific immune response for oci in comparison with chronic hepatitis c (chc). conclusions with a clinical history of approximately 11 years, occult hcv infection can be considered an occult type of chc. evidences s...

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation after chemotherapy or immunosuppressive therapy is a serious cause of liver-related morbidity and mortality. The mechanism of HBV reactivation is still unclear, but it is believed due to the suppression of immune response hence increasing the viral load. No uniform diagnostic criteria are available, HBV reactivation can be confirmed by an increase in serum H...

INTRODUCTION Anti-hepatitis B core antibody (Anti-HBc) alone is defined as the presence of anti-HBc in the absence of HBsAg and anti-HBs. The significance of this serological pattern as a predicting factor for occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection remains largely unknown. This study aimed to assess the significance of anti-HBc alone in predicting occult HBV infection in high-risk and low-ris...

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...

BACKGROUND Occult hepatitis B virus infection (OBI) is defined as the presence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA in the liver and/or in the serum of patients with negative results of hepatitis B s antigen (HBsAg) test with or without serological markers of previous viral exposure. The impact of OBI in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is still unclear. OBJECTIVES The Aim of this study was ...

I read with great interest the paper by Taheri et al. published in (1) Hepatitis Monthly (Number 31, February 2011). The results of this follow-up study are hopeful of hepatitis-B vaccine efficacy in patients who lost HBsAg and did not seroconvert to anti-HBs with no detectable HBV DNA. However, the editorial in the same issue, as well as Taheri et al. themselves, noted some important limitatio...

Occult hepatitis B virus infection (OBI) is characterised by the persistence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) genome in the liver, without any evidence of overt infection: without HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) and HBV DNA detectable in the serum, or fugacious spots of very low levels of viraemia. OBI, a possible phase in the natural history of chronic hepatitis B, is mainly due to the strong suppressio...

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...