ABSTRACT
Occult hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is characterized by the detection of HCV-RNA in liver in the absence of anti-HCV and serum HCV-RNA determined by conventional techniques. The development of a new enzyme immunoassay for the detection of antibodies against a conserved epitope in the HCV core protein, together with the detection of HCV-RNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells and in serum after concentrating the viral particles by ultracentrifugation, allow diagnosis of more than 90% of patients with occult HCV without the need to perform a liver biopsy. Histological damage in occult HCV infection ranges from minimal changes to liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma, although in general this disease is less severe than classical chronic hepatitis C. A significant prevalence of occult HCV infection has been identified in risk groups such as hemodialysis patients and the family members of patients with occult hepatitis C. This occult HCV infection can also be found in subjects without clinical or biochemical evidence of liver disease.
Subject(s)
Hepatitis C/diagnosis , Hepatitis C/blood , Humans , Risk FactorsABSTRACT
La infección oculta por el virus de la hepatitis C (VHC) se caracteriza por la detección del ARN-VHC en hígado en ausencia de anti-VHC y de ARN-VHC en suero determinados mediante técnicas convencionales. El desarrollo de un nuevo EIA para la detección de anticuerpos frente a un epítopo conservado de la proteína core del VHC junto con la determinación del ARN-VHC en células mononucleares de sangre periférica y en suero tras concentrar las partículas virales mediante ultracentrifugación, permite diagnosticar a más del 90% de los pacientes con infección oculta por VHC sin necesidad de realizar una biopsia hepática. El daño histológico causado por la infección oculta por VHC comprende desde cambios mínimos hasta cirrosis y carcinoma hepatocelular, aunque en general es una enfermedad más benigna que la hepatitis crónica C clásica. Se ha detectado una prevalencia significativa de infección oculta por VHC en grupos de riesgo como pacientes en hemodiálisis y familiares de pacientes diagnosticados de hepatitis C oculta. Además, esta infección oculta puede darse en sujetos sin evidencias clínicas ni bioquímicas de enfermedad hepática (AU)
Occult hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is characterized by the detection of HCV-RNA in liver in the absence of anti-HCV and serum HCV-RNA determined by conventional techniques. The development of a new enzyme immunoassay for the detection of antibodies against a conserved epitope in the HCV core protein, together with the detection of HCV-RNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells and in serum after concentrating the viral particles by ultracentrifugation, allow diagnosis of more than 90% of patients with occult HCV without the need to perform a liver biopsy. Histological damage in occult HCV infection ranges from minimal changes to liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma, although in general this disease isless severe than classical chronic hepatitis C. A significant prevalence of occult HCV infection has been identified in risk groups such as hemodialysis patients and the family members of patients with occult hepatitis C. This occult HCV infection can also be found in subjects without clinical or biochemical evidence of liver disease (AU)
