Can chronic hepatitis C resolve spontaneously? Case report and review

ABSTRACT

Chronic hepatitis C [CHC] is variably prevalent around the world and is usually a blood-borne infection. Most patients will have subclinical infection at the onset, but patients who develop acute hepatitis can spontaneously clear the virus upon immune activation. Up to 80% of CHC patients will progress to chronic infection. CHC is unlikely to clear spontaneously. This article describes two female patients with transfusion-acquired CHC diagnosed by both positive hepatitis C virus [HCV]-Ab and hepatitis C virus-polymerase chain reaction [HCV-PCR] tests. Both patients cleared the infection spontaneously after more than 5 and 25 years of CHC infection, respectively