Preliminary report of hepatitis B virus genotype prevalence in Iran

AIM： To determine the prevalence of hepatitis B virus （HBV） genotypes in Iranian hepatitis B surface antigen （HBsAg） carriers, chronic hepatitis B and cirrhotic patients. METHODS： A total of 109 HBsAg-positive patients were included in this study. HBV genotypes were determined by using INNO-LiPA methodology which is based on the reverse hybridization principle. RESULTS： The distribution of patients with different stages of liver disease was as follows： 95 （86.4%） chronic hepatitis, 11 （10%） liver cirrhosis, and 3 （2.7%） inactive carrier. Of the chronic hepatitis and liver cirrhosis patients, 26.4% were HBeAg-positive while 70% were HBeAg-negative. Genotype D was the only detected type found in all patients. CONCLUSION： Classifying HBV into genotypes has to be cost-effective and clinically relevant. Our study indicates that HBV genotype D prevails in the Mediterranean area, Near and Middle East, and South Asia. Continued efforts for understanding HBV genotype through international co-operation will reveal further virological differences of the genotypes and their clinical relevance.