Acute Viral Hepatitis in Childhood

Abstract

A study of 164 consecutive patients (97 males, 67 females; aged 3–11 years) with acute hepatitis was done. Hepatitis A was the most frequent etiologic type. It occurred in 82.7% of the 3–5‐year age group, and in 72.2% and 57.2% of the 6–8− and 9–11‐year age groups, respectively. Non‐A, non‐B hepatitis was rather infrequent (4.3%). Hepatitis B occurred in 13.7% of the 3–5‐year age group and reached 39.6% in the 9–11‐year age group. While all hepatitis A and non‐A, non‐B cases recovered within a relatively short time, hepatitis B patients recovered more slowly; two cases recovered 1 year after the onset of symptoms. Chronicity was demonstrated in 23.8% of hepatitis B patients 2 years after the onset of the disease. HB***8Ag clearance was slower in children than in adults. At 4 months, only 59% of patients had serum converted, and a chronic carrier state occurred in 13 of 42 subjects followed for up to 2 years (three healthy carriers and 10 with chronic hepatitis of various types). Our data show that persistence of HB***8Ag positivity does not always lead to chronicity in children. Of the eight patients HB***8Ag‐positive 1 year after the onset of symptoms, two recovered.