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A survey of 2985 apparently healthy Taiwanese in southern Taiwan revealed a high prevalence (18.2%) of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). It was significantly higher in males (22.3%) than in females (13.6%), but no correlation with family origin, socioeconomic status or residence was established. About one-third of the breeding female HBsAg carriers were HBeAg-positive, and these may be an important source in the spread of HBV. Subtyping of HBsAg in 63 subjects showed adw to be dominant in this area, and 8 subjects with suspicious results had overlapping heterotypic HBV's (7 adwr and 1 adyw) in addition to 2 subjects in which coexistence of HBsAg and anti-HBs was recognized. The association between HBsAg positivity and serum transaminase elevation was significant, especially in the older groups who had a higher abnormal rate. Hepatitis A virus infection was serious too, with nearly 100% of people above 20 years of age being anti-HA antibody positive.
A survey of 2985 apparently healthy Taiwanese in southern Taiwan revealed a high prevalence (18.2%) of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). It was significantly higher in males (22.3%) than in females (13.6%), but no correlation with family origin, socioeconomic status or residence was established. About one-third of the breeding female HBsAg carriers were HBeAg-positive, and these may be an important source in the spread of HBV. Subtyping of HBsAg in 63 subjects showed adw to be dominant in this area, and 8 subjects with suspicious results had overlapping heterotypic HBV's (7 adwr and 1 adyw) in addition to 2 subjects in which coexistence of HBsAg and anti-HBs was recognized. The association between HBsAg positivity and serum transaminase elevation was significant, especially in the older groups who had a higher abnormal rate. Hepatitis A virus infection was serious too, with nearly 100% of people above 20 years of age being anti-HA antibody positive.
We investigated sex-and age-specific prevalences of hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) and antibody to HBeAg (anti-HBe) in 1,163 carriers of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) in Okinawa, Japan, and followed them up for longer than one year in correlation with liver function abnormalities. Elevated serum transaminase levels were found in 160 (13.8%) of them. The prevalence of liver function abnormalities was significantly higher in male carriers (127/690, 18.4%) than in female carriers (33/473, 7.0%) at a P value of 0.001. In asymptomatic carriers, the prevalence of HBeAg was 13.2% and that of anti-HBe 80.0%, significantly different from 41.9% and 54.4%, respectively, in carriers with elevated transaminase levels (P< 0.001). In asymptomatic carriers, the mean age of HBeAg-positive carriers was 16.7 years which was much lower than the 22.8 years in carriers with liver function abnormalities.The prevalence of elevated transaminase levels was significantly higher in carriers with HBeAg than in those with anti-HBe (33.8% vs. 9.7%, P< 0.001). Based on these results, the prolonged positivity for serum HBeAg would qualify as a predictor for deteriorating liver function among HBsAg carriers.Chronic hepatitis B tends to progress while hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) is present in the serum. The HBeAg phase is associated with a high positivity for DNA of hepatitis B virus (HBV), DNA polymerase activity associated with HBV, the detection of Dane particles in the serum (5, 13, 16), and abnormalities in liver function tests. By contrast, such viral markers are rarely found in individuals after they seroconvert to antibody to HBeAg (anti-HBe), and chronic hepatitis B, if contracted by them, is mostly regressive (6, 17). We have reported that the prevalence of HBeAg in asymptomatic carriers decreases with age, reciprocally to that of anti-HBe (10). Little is known, however, about the correlation of HBeAg/anti-HBe status among HBsAg carriers with liver damage.For the purpose of evaluating the influence of HBeAg/anti-HBe status on the liver function, we investigated sex-and age-specific prevalences of HBeAg and 843
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