Chronic Hepatitis B in Italy: New Features of an Old Disease—Approaching the Universal Prevalence of Hepatitis B e Antigen—Negative Cases and the Eradication of Hepatitis D Infection

• Published in: Clinical infectious diseases Vol. 46; no. 1; pp. 110 - 113
• Main Authors: Sagnelli, Evangelista, Stroffolini, Tommaso, Mele, Alfonso, Imparato, Michele, Almasio, Piero L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chicago, IL The University of Chicago Press 01.01.2008; University of Chicago Press; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Alcoholism; Alcoholism - epidemiology; Alcoholism - virology; Antigens; Biological and medical sciences; Brief Reports; Chronic hepatitis; Cross-Sectional Studies; Disease Progression; Epidemiology; Female; Genotypes; Hepacivirus; Hepatitis antigens; Hepatitis B; Hepatitis B e Antigens - blood; Hepatitis B virus; Hepatitis B, Chronic - epidemiology; Hepatitis B, Chronic - virology; Hepatitis C virus; Hepatitis D virus; Hepatitis D, Chronic - epidemiology; Hepatitis D, Chronic - virology; Hepatitis Delta Virus; Hepatocellular carcinoma; Human viral diseases; Humans; Infections; Infectious diseases; Italy - epidemiology; Liver; Liver cirrhosis; Liver Cirrhosis - pathology; Liver Cirrhosis - virology; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Regression analysis; Seroepidemiologic Studies; Viral diseases; Viral hepatitis; Italy; Europe; Human; Prevalence; Hepatic disease; Eradication; Epidemiology; Infection; Virus; Hepatitis B e antigen; Viral hepatitis B; Hepatitis D virus; Viral disease; Digestive diseases; Flaviviridae; Predictive factor; Hepatitis C virus; Hepacivirus
• ISSN: 1058-4838; 1537-6591; 1537-6591
• DOI: 10.1086/524074

We evaluated 1336 hepatitis B surface antigen—positive subjects consecutively observed in 79 Italian hospitals over a 6-month period. The proportion of hepatitis B e antigen—negative cases was 86.4%, that of patients coinfected with hepatitis D virus was 9.7%, and the rate of patients coinfected with hepatitis C virus was 16.8%. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that age >49 years, alcohol abuse, and anti—hepatitis D virus and anti—hepatitis C virus positivity were independent predictors of progression to liver cirrhosis.