Guilera M, Sáiz J C, López-Labrador F X, Olmedo E, Ampurdanés S, Forns X, Bruix J, Parés A, Sánchez-Tapias J M, Jiménez de Anta M T, Rodés J
Department of Medicine, University of Barcelona Medical School, Spain.
Gut. 1998 Jan;42(1):107-11. doi: 10.1136/gut.42.1.107.
The hepatitis G virus (HGV), a recently identified member of the Flaviviridae family, can cause chronic infection in man but the role of this agent in chronic liver disease is poorly understood.
To evaluate the prevalence and meaning of HGV infection in a large series of patients with chronic liver disease.
Two hundred volunteer blood donors, 179 patients with chronic hepatitis C, 111 with chronic hepatitis B, 104 with alcoholic liver disease, 136 with hepatocellular carcinoma, and 24 with cryptogenic chronic liver disease were studied.
HGV RNA was investigated in serum samples by reverse transcription and polymerase chain reaction amplification of the 5' non-coding region of HCV and hybridisation to a specific probe. The main features of HGV RNA seropositive and seronegative patients were compared.
The prevalence of HGV infection was 3% in blood donors, 7% in chronic hepatitis C, 8% in chronic hepatitis B, 2% in alcoholic liver disease, 4% in hepatocellular carcinoma, and 8% in cryptogenic chronic liver disease. HGV infected patients tended to be younger than non-infected patients but no differences concerning sex, possible source of infection, clinical manifestations, biochemical and virological parameters, or severity of liver lesions were found.
The prevalence of HGV infection in chronic liver disease seems to be relatively low in our area. Infection with HGV does not seem to play a significant pathogenic role in patients with chronic liver disease related to chronic HBV or HCV infection or to increased alcohol consumption, or in those with cryptogenic chronic liver disease.
庚型肝炎病毒（HGV）是黄病毒科最近发现的成员，可在人类中引起慢性感染，但该病原体在慢性肝病中的作用尚不清楚。
评估大量慢性肝病患者中HGV感染的患病率及其意义。
研究了200名志愿献血者、179例慢性丙型肝炎患者、111例慢性乙型肝炎患者、104例酒精性肝病患者、136例肝细胞癌患者和24例原因不明的慢性肝病患者。
通过逆转录和聚合酶链反应扩增HCV的5'非编码区，并与特异性探针杂交，对血清样本中的HGV RNA进行检测。比较了HGV RNA血清学阳性和阴性患者的主要特征。
献血者中HGV感染率为3%，慢性丙型肝炎患者中为7%，慢性乙型肝炎患者中为8%，酒精性肝病患者中为2%，肝细胞癌患者中为4%，原因不明的慢性肝病患者中为8%。HGV感染患者往往比未感染患者年轻，但在性别、可能的感染源、临床表现、生化和病毒学参数或肝脏病变严重程度方面未发现差异。
在我们地区，慢性肝病中HGV感染的患病率似乎相对较低。HGV感染似乎在与慢性HBV或HCV感染、酒精摄入增加相关的慢性肝病患者或原因不明的慢性肝病患者中不发挥重要的致病作用。
