TY - JOUR
T1 - Detection of hepatitis b virus DNA in asymptomatic hepatitis b surface antigen carriers
T2 - Relation to sexual transmission
AU - Tassopoulos, Nicolaos C.
AU - Papaevangelou, George J.
AU - Roumeliotou-karayannis, Anastasia
AU - Ticehurst, John R.
AU - Feinstone, Stephen M.
AU - Purcell, Robert H.
N1 - Funding Information:
Reprint requests to Dr. George Papaevangelou, National Center for Viral Hepatitis, Athens School of Hygiene, P.O. Box 14085, Athens 115 21, Greece, This study was supported by a grant from the Ministry of Research and Technology of Greece, The authors thank Linda Jordan for her help in the preparation of the manuscript. Dr. Nicolaos C. Tassopoulos was a Visiting Scientist, Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD.
PY - 1987/10
Y1 - 1987/10
N2 - Tassopoulos, N. C, G. J. Papaevangelou (National Center for Viral Hepatitis, Athens, Greece), A. Roumeliotou-Karayannis, J. R. Ticehurst, S. M. Feinstone, and R. H. Purcell. Detection of hepatitis B virus DNA in asymptomatic hepatitis B surface antigen carriers: relation to sexual transmission. Am J Epidemiol 1987;126:587-91.The authors tested, by molecular hybridization, for hepatitis B virus DNA in serum specimens of 182 asymptomatic hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) Greek canlers who were heterosexual partners of patients with acute hepatitis B (group A: 96 cases) or healthy subjects who were susceptible to hepatitis B (group B: 86 cases). The mean age (34.1 ± 10.4 vs. 33.9 ± 8.4 years) and the mean duration of sexual contact (6.9 ± 8.9 vs. 7.2 ± 6.3 years) were similar in the two groups of carriers. Hepatitis B virus DNA was detected significantly more frequently in group A than in group B (59.4% vs. 11.6%, p < 0.001). In particular, in group A, hepatitis B virus DNA was detected in 96.9% of hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive and 41% of antibody to HBeAg (anti-HBe)-positive carriers. In contrast, in group B, hepatitis B virus DNA was identified in only 10.8% of anti-HBe-positlve carriers (p < 0.001). These differences were especially significant in the young and middle-aged carriers (16-49 years old) and during the first four years of sexual contact. These data suggest that 1) there is a positive correlation between the presence of hepatitis B virus DNA in serum and the epidemiologic evidence of sexual transmission of hepatitis B virus, 2) hepatitis B virus DNA is a better indicator of infectivity than HBeAg/anti-HBe, and 3) the detection of hepatitis B virus DNA in serum probably identified carriers with high infectivity and potentially higher risk of transmitting hepatitis B virus to their sexual partners.
AB - Tassopoulos, N. C, G. J. Papaevangelou (National Center for Viral Hepatitis, Athens, Greece), A. Roumeliotou-Karayannis, J. R. Ticehurst, S. M. Feinstone, and R. H. Purcell. Detection of hepatitis B virus DNA in asymptomatic hepatitis B surface antigen carriers: relation to sexual transmission. Am J Epidemiol 1987;126:587-91.The authors tested, by molecular hybridization, for hepatitis B virus DNA in serum specimens of 182 asymptomatic hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) Greek canlers who were heterosexual partners of patients with acute hepatitis B (group A: 96 cases) or healthy subjects who were susceptible to hepatitis B (group B: 86 cases). The mean age (34.1 ± 10.4 vs. 33.9 ± 8.4 years) and the mean duration of sexual contact (6.9 ± 8.9 vs. 7.2 ± 6.3 years) were similar in the two groups of carriers. Hepatitis B virus DNA was detected significantly more frequently in group A than in group B (59.4% vs. 11.6%, p < 0.001). In particular, in group A, hepatitis B virus DNA was detected in 96.9% of hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive and 41% of antibody to HBeAg (anti-HBe)-positive carriers. In contrast, in group B, hepatitis B virus DNA was identified in only 10.8% of anti-HBe-positlve carriers (p < 0.001). These differences were especially significant in the young and middle-aged carriers (16-49 years old) and during the first four years of sexual contact. These data suggest that 1) there is a positive correlation between the presence of hepatitis B virus DNA in serum and the epidemiologic evidence of sexual transmission of hepatitis B virus, 2) hepatitis B virus DNA is a better indicator of infectivity than HBeAg/anti-HBe, and 3) the detection of hepatitis B virus DNA in serum probably identified carriers with high infectivity and potentially higher risk of transmitting hepatitis B virus to their sexual partners.
KW - Carrier state
KW - DNA viruses
KW - Hepatitis B surface antigens
KW - Hepatitis B virus
KW - Infection
KW - Sexually transmitted diseases
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U2 - 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a114698
DO - 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a114698
M3 - Article
C2 - 3631050
AN - SCOPUS:0023241918
SN - 0002-9262
VL - 126
SP - 587
EP - 591
JO - American journal of epidemiology
JF - American journal of epidemiology
IS - 4
ER -