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. 2002 Jun;8(3):567-70.
doi: 10.3748/wjg.v8.i3.567.

Coinfection of TT virus and response to interferon therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis B or C

Yung-Chih Lai  1 , Ruey-Tyng Hu, Sien-Sing Yang, Chi-Hwa Wu
Affiliations

Coinfection of TT virus and response to interferon therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis B or C

Yung-Chih Lai et al. World J Gastroenterol. 2002 Jun.

Abstract

Aim: To investigate the serum positive percentage of TT virus (TTV) in patients with chronic hepatitis B or C and the response of the coinfected TTV to interferon (IFN) during IFN therapy for chronic hepatitis B and C.

Methods: We retrospectively studied the serum samples of 70 patients with chronic hepatitis who had received IFN-alpha therapy from January 1997 to June 2000, which included 40 cases of hepatitis B and 30 hepatitis C. All the patients had been followed up for at least 6 months after the end of IFN therapy. The serum TTV DNA was detected using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) before and every month during the course of IFN treatment.

Results: TTV infection was detected in 15% (6/40) of the chronic hepatitis B group and 30% (9/30) of the chronic hepatitis C group. Loss of serum TTV DNA during IFN therapy occurred in 3 of 6 patients (50%) and 6 of 9 (67%) of hepatitis B and C groups, respectively. Seronegativity of TTV was found all during the first month of IFN therapy in the 9 patients. There was no correlation between the seroconversion of TTV and the biochemical changes of the patients.

Conclusion: TTV is not infrequently coinfected in patients with chronic hepatitis B and C in Taiwan, and more than half of the TTV infections are IFN-sensitive. However, the loss of serum TTV DNA does not affect the clinical course of the patients with chronic hepatitis B or C.

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