Al-Ali Jaber, Al-Mutari Nawaf, Ahmed El-Shahat Farag
Faculty of Medicine, Kuwait University, Jabriya, Kuwait.
Hepatogastroenterology. 2011 May-Jun;58(107-108):880-6.
BACKGROUND/AIMS: It is well recognized that chronic hepatitis C infection causes liver disease ranging from mild chronic hepatitis to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Hepatitis C virus is also associated with extrahepatic manifestations that may be the first clinical presentation of infection. Cutaneous disease can constitute a significant part of the wide spectrum of extrahepatic abnormalities associated with Hepatitis C infection. The aim of the present study was to estimate the extra burden of dermatological manifestations as a result of Hepatitis C virus infection in Kuwait.
A total of 75 positive antibody patients to hepatitis C virus were enrolled in the study and compared to an age and gender-matched control group which comprised 75 healthy individuals with negative antibody to hepatitis C virus results.
Generalized pruritus was significantly increased (22.67%) in chronic Hepatitis C infected patients compared to controls (5.33%), (p<0.01). No statistical differences were found in other skin findings for HCV positive and negative patients.
Cutaneous manifestations may be the first clinical sign of chronic Hepatitis C infection. Screening for Hepatitis C infection in certain dermatologicalal conditions may help in early detection of Hepatitis C infection which may help prevent further transmission of Hepatitis C virus.
背景/目的：众所周知，慢性丙型肝炎感染会导致从轻度慢性肝炎到肝硬化和肝细胞癌等一系列肝脏疾病。丙型肝炎病毒还与肝外表现相关，这些表现可能是感染的首发临床表现。皮肤疾病可能是与丙型肝炎感染相关的广泛肝外异常的重要组成部分。本研究的目的是评估科威特丙型肝炎病毒感染导致的皮肤表现的额外负担。
本研究共纳入75例丙型肝炎病毒抗体阳性患者，并与一个年龄和性别匹配的对照组进行比较，该对照组由75例丙型肝炎病毒抗体阴性的健康个体组成。
与对照组（5.33%）相比，慢性丙型肝炎感染患者的全身性瘙痒显著增加（22.67%），（p<0.01）。丙型肝炎病毒阳性和阴性患者在其他皮肤表现方面未发现统计学差异。
皮肤表现可能是慢性丙型肝炎感染的首发临床症状。在某些皮肤病情况下筛查丙型肝炎感染可能有助于早期发现丙型肝炎感染，这可能有助于预防丙型肝炎病毒的进一步传播。
