Prevalence of hepatitis G virus (HGV) infection in an endemic area of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection

• Published in: Hepato-gastroenterology Vol. 47; no. 35; p. 1340
• Main Authors: Kitano, M, Sakaguchi, K, Miyashita, M, Mouri, H, Senoh, T, Nishimura, M, Ohta, T, Fujio, K, Shimomura, H, Tsuji, T
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Greece 01.09.2000
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Endemic Diseases; Female; Flaviviridae; Hepatitis Antibodies - blood; Hepatitis C - epidemiology; Hepatitis C Antibodies - blood; Hepatitis, Viral, Human - epidemiology; Humans; Japan - epidemiology; Male; Middle Aged; Prevalence; RNA, Viral - blood; Japan
• ISSN: 0172-6390

We investigated the prevalence of hepatitis G virus infection among inhabitants of a hepatitis C virus endemic area. Two hundred and eighty-eight inhabitants, who underwent medical examinations for health screening, were enrolled in this epidemiological study. HGV RNA and HCV RNA were detected by polymerase chain reaction. We also examined anti-HGV envelope protein (E2) antibodies in all serum samples. In these 288 inhabitants, we found anti-HCV antibodies (HCV-Ab) and HCV RNA in 28.5% and 17.4%, respectively. HGV RNA and anti-HGV E2 were detected in 9 (3.1%) and 16 (5.5%), respectively. One patient was positive for both HGV RNA and anti-HGV E2. The exposure rate, expressed as the percentage of people with HGV RNA and/or anti-HGV E2, was 8.3%, which was significantly lower than the incidence of positive HCV-Ab. Of the 24 patients with HGV RNA and/or anti-HGV E2, 15 (62.5%) were positive for HCV-Ab, of those HCV RNA was detected in 9 (37.5%). Further, we found a higher prevalence of HGV exposure in patients with HCV-Ab than in those without (8.3% vs. 4.4%). HGV infection was not identical to the epidemic hepatitis C virus infection among inhabitants of this town, suggesting that hepatitis C virus might be less infectious than hepatitis C virus.