Significance of antibody to hepatitis C virus in Japanese patients with viral hepatitis: Relationship between anti-HCV antibody and the prognosis of non-A, non-B post-transfusion hepatitis

In a retrospective study, antibody to hepatitis C virus (anti‐HCV antibody) was measured in 80 patients with acute viral hepatitis (type A, 18; type B, 21; type non‐A, non‐B, 41). Anti‐HCV antibody was found in 12 of 20 patients (60%) with non‐A, non‐B post‐transfusion hepatitis (NANB‐PTH) and in 9 of 21 patients (43%) with sporadic NANB hepatitis (NANB‐SPO). Patients with acute hepatitis type A or type B did not have anti‐HCV antibody. The number of patients who developed chronic hepatitis was greater in the group with anti‐HCV antibody than in the anti‐HCV negative group in both NANB‐PTH and NANB‐SPO. The difference was significant in those with NANB‐PTH (P < 0.05). To investigate the relationship between the long‐term prognosis of NANB‐PTH and the course of anti‐HCV, we studied anti‐HCV antibody in 12 patients who developed chronic type C hepatitis (C‐CH) after PTH and followed them for more than 5 years after the development of PTH. One year after the development of PTH, all 12 had anti‐HCV antibody. Five lost anti‐HCV antibody (group 1) while 7 remained positive (group 2) at the final examination. Four of the 5 patients in group 1 had normal serum transaminases; however, abnormal transaminase persisted in all 7 patients in group 2 until the end of follow‐up (P < 0.05). Because there was no significant difference in the mean follow‐up period between groups 1 (91.6 months) and 2 (102.9 months), it is assumed that the long‐term prognosis of group 1 is better than that of group 2. These observations indicate that anti‐HCV antibody is a useful diagnostic marker for non‐A, non‐B hepatitis in patients with acute hepatitis and that the course of anti‐HCV antibody is closely related to the evolution of serum transaminase abnormality in patients with acute and chronic viral hepatitis type C.