An RNA Virus, named hepatitis C Virus (HCV), has been proposed as an etiological agent for non-A, non-B (NANB) hepatitis, and antibodies directed to HCV (anti-HCV) are detectable by an enzyme-immuno assay (EIA), and commercial first and second
generation assay kits are easily available.
And so we planned this study in order to assess the causative role of HCV to the developmnt of the various liver diseases and to compare the prevalence of anti-HCV in Chonbuck province with that of the other areas.
To evaluate the prevelence of anti-HCV in the pantients with HBsAg negative and HBsAg positive liver diseases, we tested 347 sera with first generation of Abbott enzyme immuno assay method (HCV-EIA), and 121 sera samples with sceond generation of
HCV-EIA.
Among the total 468 patients, we selected 159 patients to make our goal because their diagnosis were biopsy proven and their anti-HCV were studied 2~3 times serially. Anti-HCV was detected in fifty-two (11.1%) of 468 pateitns with various liver
diseases. thirty seven (10.7%) of 347 patients by first generation Kits, fifteen (12.4%) of 121 patients by second generation Kits and nineteen (12.0%) of selected patients. Among the nineteen anti-HCV positive cases, two (2.5%) of 79 pateitns
with
acute hepatitis, ten (16.4%) of 61 patietns with chronic hepatitis, four (25%) of 16 patients with liver cirrhosis and one (33.3%) of 3 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma were positive for anti-HCV.
Eleven (0.22%) of 4950 blood donors of the Chon Buck Red Cross Blood Center During the May, 1991, showed anti-HCV posivity. Ten 1:10 dilutions of 10 anti-HCV positive blood donor sera showed anti-HCV negative and ten 1:100 dilutions of 10 HBsAg
positive
blood donor sera showed HBsAg posotive.
Our tata show that the prevalence of anti-HCV in Chon buck area is low in patients with NANB acute and chronic hepatitis than that of other report.
And the prevalence of anti-HCV in patients with NANB liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma is similar to the other reports.
The low concentration of the circulating antibody than the regional differece of C hepatitis viral antigen may be one of the reasons of it.
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