Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Jul;45(3):259-61.
doi: 10.1016/j.jcv.2009.05.022. Epub 2009 Jun 7.

Differential diagnosis of hepatitis E virus, cytomegalovirus and Epstein-Barr virus infection in patients with suspected hepatitis E

M Fogeda  1 , F de Ory, A Avellón, J M Echevarría
Affiliations

Differential diagnosis of hepatitis E virus, cytomegalovirus and Epstein-Barr virus infection in patients with suspected hepatitis E

M Fogeda et al. J Clin Virol. 2009 Jul.

Abstract

Background: The accuracy of the diagnosis of hepatitis E in the clinical setting relies mainly on the performance of assays for hepatitis E virus (HEV)-specific IgM (anti-HEV IgM) testing in serum.

Objectives: Identification of factors influencing the specificity of the results obtained with these assays is an important issue in regard to the accuracy of the diagnosis.

Study design: Anti-HEV IgM and HEV RNA were studied in samples from 153 patients with acute hepatitis of unknown aetiology received during a two-year period. Fifteen patients were positive for anti-HEV IgM, and eight of them were also positive for HEV RNA. Investigation of CMV and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection markers among the remaining seven patients, and of HEV infection markers among 18 patients with infectious mononucleosis, was performed.

Results: The results obtained showed that acute infection by CMV or EBV may cause false reactivity for anti-HEV IgM, likely because of polyclonal B-cell stimulation.

Conclusions: Since infection by these herpesviruses may produce acute hepatitis, such event can cause diagnostic mistakes and should be investigated in patients positive for anti-HEV IgM and negative for HEV RNA.

PubMed Disclaimer

MeSH terms