RESUMO
Acute viral hepatitis [AVH] is a major public health problem in Pakistan. To know its frequency, clinical and biochemical presentation, we studied 1325 patients of AVH admitted in Medical Unit - II, Nishtar Hospital, Multan, from January 1987 to December 1991, with a rate of 11.03% of total admission in the Unit and 0.41% of total admissions in the hospital. Nine-hundred and seventeen [69.21%] were male and 408 [30.79%] were female patients [male:female ratio was 2.25:1]. The mean age was 41.02 +/- 14.20 years. A total of 946 [71.4%] patients were HBsAg positive and there were 296 [22.34%] deaths. The Age <30 years in female patients; <60 years in male patients, a short hospital stay [<3 days], short duration of illness [<7 days]; hepatomegaly <3 cm, hepatic encephalopathy; HBsAg positive status; serum bilirubin <10 mg/dl; Fasting blood sugar <80 mg/dl in and serum ALT > 400 IU/L in females and a prolonged prothrombin time [> 10 sec. as compared to control] were all significantly associated with poor prognosis i.e. high death rate [P< 0.001]. Acute viral hepatitis in Multan area appeared to be more aggressive in type, was associated with high death rate and high frequency of hepatitis B infection, as compared to the studies from Peshawar; Rawalpindi and Karachi and was consistant with a study from Upper Sindh