Occult Hepatitis B virus infection among HIV negative and positive isolated anti-HBc individuals in eastern Ethiopia

AbstractThe absence of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and the presence of antibody to hepatitis B core antigen (anti-HBc) in the blood of apparently healthy individuals may not indicate the absence of circulating hepatitis B virus (HBV) and might be infectious. Despite the risk of HBV transmission, there has been no report from Ethiopia examining this issue; therefore, this study determined occult HBV infection (OBI) among isolated anti-HBc (IAHBc) HIV negative and HIV positive individuals on ART in eastern Ethiopia. A total of 306 IAHBc individuals were included in this study. DNA was extracted, amplified, and detected from plasma using a commercially available RealTime PCR platform (Abbott m2000rt) following the manufacturer’s instructions. Data were entered into EPI Data version 3.1, cleaned, and analyzed using Stata version 13. Descriptive analysis was used to calculate prevalence, summarize sociodemographic data and other factors. From the 306 IAHBc individuals (184 HIV positive and 122 HIV negative) included in the study, 183 (59.8%) were female of which 142 (77.6%) were within the reproductive age group. DNA extraction, amplified and detection was conducted in 224 individuals. The overall OBI prevalence was 5.8% (5.6% in HIV negative and 6% in HIV positive) among the IAHBc individuals. The HBV DNA concentration among the occult hepatitis B individuals was < 200 IU/mL, indicating a true occult. This study reported the burden of OBI, which pauses a significant public health problem due to the high burden of HBV infection in the country. OBI may cause substantial risk of HBV transmission from blood transfusion, organ transplantation as well as vertical transmission as screening is solely dependent on HBsAg testing.

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High Rates of Occult Hepatitis B Virus Infection in HIV-Positive Individuals Initiating Antiretroviral Therapy in Botswana

Open Forum Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1093/ofid/ofx195 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 4 (4) ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Kathleen Ryan ◽

Motswedi Anderson ◽

Ivayla Gyurova ◽

Lilliam Ambroggio ◽

Sikhulile Moyo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatitis B Virus ◽

Antiretroviral Therapy ◽

Hepatitis B ◽

Hbv Dna ◽

Hbv Infection ◽

Hiv Positive ◽

Occult Hepatitis ◽

Occult Hbv ◽

B Virus ◽

Occult Hepatitis B

Abstract Background Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)–negative but hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA-positive infection—known as occult hepatitis B infection (OBI)—occurs in 1% to >15% of HIV-positive individuals in the United States and South Africa, respectively. However, there are no data on OBI from Botswana, a country known to be hyperendemic for chronic HBV infection and to have a significant HIV burden. Methods Two hundred seventy-two adults enrolled in an HIV treatment study of tenofovir/emtricitabine as the nucleoside backbone who were previously determined to be HBsAg negative were tested for HBV DNA at baseline and 1 year after initiation of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Results HBV DNA was detected in 72 of 272 (26.5%). Six individuals (8.3%) had HBV DNA levels greater than 200 IU/mL, and the highest viral load was 3280 IU/mL. Of 65 participants with OBI evaluated at 12 months after initiating HAART, only 1 (1.5%) had detectable HBV DNA. Conclusions Occult HBV infection is quite common in HIV-infected patients in Botswana, although its impact on the course of HIV disease progression is unknown. The suppression of occult HBV DNA levels by tenofovir/emtricitabine suggests an effective therapeutic option, although the long-term suppressive abilities remain unstudied.

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Occult Hepatitis B Virus Infection among HIV Positive Patients in Nigeria

Journal of Tropical Medicine ◽

10.1155/2014/796121 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 2014 ◽

pp. 1-5 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Oluyinka Oladele Opaleye ◽

Adeolu Sunday Oluremi ◽

Adetona Babatunde Atiba ◽

Moses Olubusuyi Adewumi ◽

Olatunji Victor Mabayoje ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatitis B Virus ◽

Virus Infection ◽

Hepatitis B ◽

Hbv Dna ◽

Hiv Positive ◽

Hepatitis B Virus Infection ◽

Occult Hepatitis ◽

B Virus ◽

Occult Hepatitis B ◽

Detectable Hbsag

HIV has been known to interfere with the natural history of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. In this study we investigate the prevalence of occult hepatitis B virus infection (OBI) among HIV-infected individuals in Nigeria. Overall, 1200 archived HIV positive samples were screened for detectable HBsAg using rapid technique, in Ikole Ekiti Specialist Hospital. The HBsAg negative samples were tested for HBsAg, anti-HBc, and anti-HCV by ELISA. Polymerase chain reaction was used for HBV DNA amplification and CD4 counts were analyzed by cytometry. Nine hundred and eighty of the HIV samples were HBsAg negative. HBV DNA was detected in 21/188 (11.2%) of patients without detectable HBsAg. CD4 count for the patients ranged from 2 to 2,140 cells/μL of blood (mean = 490 cells/μL of blood). HCV coinfection was detected only in 3/188 (1.6%) of the HIV-infected patients (P>0.05). Twenty-eight (29.2%) of the 96 HIV samples screened were positive for anti-HBc. Averagely the HBV viral load was <50 copies/mL in the OBI samples examined by quantitative PCR. The prevalence of OBI was significantly high among HIV-infected patients. These findings highlight the significance of nucleic acid testing in HBV diagnosis in HIV patients.

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