Complement levels in acute infectious hepatitis and serum hepatitis

Abstract

The level of the third component of complement was measured in serial specimens of serum taken from thirty-one patients with acute viral hepatitis. Fourteen of the thirty-one patients were positive for the hepatitis-associated antigen. A characteristic fluctuation was observed in twenty-nine of the thirty-one patients. This consisted of an initial fall of the level of C3, followed by an increase to a higher than normal level and then a gradual return to normal. No difference was observed between the patients who were positive and those who were negative for the hepatitis-associated antigen. These results support the view that immune complexes play a significant role in the pathogenesis of acute viral hepatitis.