Antioxidant defense and oxidative stress in children with acute hepatitis A

Published data on oxidative stress in children with acute hepatitis A are still very scarce. This study aims to evaluate the oxidant/antioxidant status of these patients. Prospective, case-control study, over 2.5 years in patients under hospitalized and ambulatory care. The levels of a whole-blood antioxidant, reduced glutathione; and plasma antioxidants, β-carotene, retinol, ascorbic acid, α-tocopherol; and the biomarker of oxidative stress, malondialdehyde, were evaluated in 50 pediatric patients (age range, 5-16 years; 29 males and 21 females) with acute hepatitis A and in 50 healthy children as control subjects (age range, 5-16 years; 25 males and 25 females). Plasma levels of reduced glutathione, β-carotene, retinol, α-tocopherol and ascorbic acid were significantly lower, while malondialdehyde plasma levels were significantly increased in the patient group when compared to the controls (P