ABSTRACT
BACKGROUNDS/AIMS: To investigate the prevalence and clinical implications of hepatitis G virus (HGV) infection in patients with chronic renal failure, a cross-sectional study of 131 hemodialysis patients and 33 kidney transplantation recipients was conducted. METHODS: HGV RNA was amplified by reverse-transcription (RT) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay with primers from the 5'-untranslated region of the viral genome. RESULTS: The prevalence of HGV infection in patients with chronic renal failure was 25%(41/164). The following factors were taken into consideration: the mean age(43.15+/-11.97 years vs 46.46+/-13.08 years), the male to female ratio(2.15:1 vs 1.86:1), the mean of the dialysis duration(4.58+/-3.18 years vs 3.90+/-3.31 years), transfusion history (75.6% vs 62.6%), the mean of the ALT level during the prior 6 months(25.78+/-21.50 IU/L vs 23.00+/-59.49 IU/L), and the amount of transfusion(6.22+/-8.03 units vs 5.74+/-9.44 units). The anti-HCV(4.88% vs 8.94%) showed no difference between HGV RNA positive and negative group. The HBsAg positive ratio was 19.5% and 5.81% in HGV RNA positive group and negative group, respectively. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of HGV infection in patients with chronic renal failure was 25%. There was a higher rate of HBsAg positivity in the HGV RNA positive group rather than in the negative group. HGV infection did not seem to be associated with clinically significant hepatitis.