Abstract
Aim. Evaluate prevalence of hepatitis D virus replication markers among patients with chronic viral
hepatitis B (CVHB) with active infection course and pronounced biochemical markers of liver damage (ALT
level increase). Materials and methods. ALT>2N served as a criteria of active CVHB course. The following
parameters were determined: HBsAg, anti-HBcor IgG, anti-HBeAb, anti-HCV IgG, anti-HDV IgG+IgM,
HBV DNA, HDV RNA. HCV IgG(+) patients were excluded from the analysis. In total 142 patients were
examined. Results. Antibodies against HDV were detected in 16.2% (n=23) with CVHB, and HDV DNA was
detected in 21.8% of the examined individuals (n=31). The following variants of HDV infection marker
combination were detected: HDV IgG(-) HDV RNA(-) - 75.3% (n=107), no HDV infection; HDV IgG(+)
HDV RNA(-) - 2.8% (n=4), anamnestic antibodies against HDV; HDV IgG(+) HDV RNA (+) - 13.4%
(n=19), active CVHB+D infection; HDV IgG(-) HDV RNA(+) - 8.4% (n=12), seronegative course of
CVHB+B. Conclusion. Examination of patients with pronounced cytolytic syndrome but PCR HBV DNA
(-) must include not only determination of serologic markers of HDV infection but also HDV replication
markers (PCR HDV RNA). Detection of patients with seronegative HDV course among patients with HVHB
(8.4%) persuasively demonstrates the necessity to introduce molecular-biological examination for HDV RNA
into CVHB laboratory diagnostics algorithm.
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