Abstract
We screened 735 HIV-infected patients in Switzerland with unexplained alanine aminotransferase elevation for hepatitis E virus (HEV) immunoglobulin G. Although HEV seroprevalence in this population is low (2.6%), HEV RNA can persist in patients with low CD4 cell counts. Findings suggest chronic HEV infection should be considered as a cause of persistent alanine aminotransferase elevation.
Highlights
We screened 735 HIV-infected patients in Switzerland with unexplained alanine aminotransferase elevation for hepatitis E virus (HEV) immunoglobulin G
We did not find higher HEV prevalence in subgroups previously considered at higher risk of HEV infection such as MSM, injection drug users, and prisoners
It is well established that pigs and other animal species constitute reservoirs for HEV and that transmission in industrialized countries occurs mainly through contaminated meat
Summary
We screened 735 HIV-infected patients in Switzerland with unexplained alanine aminotransferase elevation for hepatitis E virus (HEV) immunoglobulin G. Findings suggest chronic HEV infection should be considered as a cause of persistent alanine aminotransferase elevation. The Study The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and role of HEV infection among participants of the Swiss HIV Cohort Study enrolled up to December 2008 who Author affiliations: Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois and Lausanne University, Lausanne, Switzerland For patients with positive serologic test results, HEV serology and blood HEV real-time PCR were performed on plasma samples stored 3 months before the first documented elevated ALT value. HEV PCR analysis was performed on all available samples from IgG-negative patients with
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