Szmuness W
Am J Pathol. 1975 Dec;81(3):629-50.
Recent advances in the study of hepatitis B shed much light on the basic epidemiologic patterns of this unique infection. The spectrum of host responses following exposure is unusually wide. Hepatitis B appears to be one of the most widespread infections; the total number of chronic carriers of the hepatitis B antigen has been estimated as at least 120 million. The following factors have been found to be closely associated with the risk of hepatitis B; geography, sex, age at testing, age at primary infection, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, occupation, sharing a household with a carrier, sexual promiscuity, and immunologic responsiveness. Data concerning the infectivity of an asymptomatic carrier are ambiguous; whether a carrier can transmit the virus by sexual intercourse also remains unknown. Available evidence seems to suggest that genetic factors may be of importance in the aggregation and segregation of hepatitis B.
乙型肝炎研究的最新进展为这种独特感染的基本流行病学模式提供了很多启示。接触后的宿主反应范围异常广泛。乙型肝炎似乎是最普遍的感染之一;据估计,乙型肝炎抗原慢性携带者的总数至少有1.2亿。已发现以下因素与感染乙型肝炎的风险密切相关:地理位置、性别、检测时的年龄、初次感染时的年龄、社会经济地位、种族、职业、与携带者同住一户、性乱交以及免疫反应性。关于无症状携带者传染性的数据尚不明确;携带者是否能通过性交传播病毒也仍然未知。现有证据似乎表明,遗传因素可能在乙型肝炎的聚集和分离中起重要作用。