[Markers of hepatitis C virus infection in dialysis units. A decreasing problem but still present in Argentina].
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to E Bruch Igartúa.
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UNLABELLED: In order to evaluate the prevalence of antibodies IgG against the virus of hepatitis C (anti HCV) in different forms of chronic liver disease negative for virus B markers of alcoholism, we studied 148 patients (pts) divided into several groups. Group I: Composed of 35 pts. with chronic active hepatitis (CAH) with definite evidence of parenteral exposure to blood. Group II: included 39 pts. with CAH without immune markers or evidence of possible parenteral transmission. Group III: Included 37 pts. with the diagnosis of CAH of autoimmune type with positivity of antinuclear, anti smooth muscle or both antibodies with range of positivity of 1:80 or higher. Group IV: was composed of 31 pts. with the diagnosis of primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). Finally group V included 6 pts. with an overlap syndrome between CAH and PBC. The prevalence of anti HCV in the different groups was as follows: [table: see text] Two of the pts. positive for anti HCV in group III and 1 in group IV revealed parenteral exposure to blood or blood product. CONCLUSIONS: The determinations of anti HCV in order to characterize the posttransfusional NANB chronic hepatitis is of value. Positivity of anti HCV is high in cryptogenic chronic hepatitis and rare in PBC. In CAH of autoimmune type and in the overlap syndrome the prevalence was higher than expected. The question if we are dealing with false positivity or an uncertain diagnosis of autoimmunity is raised.
Three female patients with cholestatic jaundice related to methimazole therapy are presented. The jaundice appeared after more or less 30 days of therapy. Markers for hepatitis A and B were negative in all. None of them had previous history of alcoholism or ingestion of potentially hepatotoxic drugs. Characteristically there was a marked elevation of alkaline phosphatase and gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase with only moderate increase of the aminotransferases. Liver biopsy performed in all showed intensive cholestasis with low degree of inflammatory reaction confined to the portal tracts. The three patients presented a prolonged duration of the liver injury in spite of the interruption of the drug lasting in one of them up to one year, but all ultimately resolved.