A re-assessment of the epidemiology and patient characteristics of hepatitis D virus infection in inner city London

Summary Objectives : To re-assess the prevalence and patient characteristics of hepatitis D virus (HDV) infection among hepatitis B patients in inner city London. Methods : All hepatitis B patients attending clinics over a 52 months period were tested for HDV antibody. All reactive samples were also tested for anti-HDV IgM and RNA. The characteristics of HDV seronegative patients first seen in the calendar year 2008 were compared with all HDV seropositive patients in the cohort. Results : Of 1048 hepatitis B patients, 11 had equivocal anti-HDV serology (1%) and 22 were HDV seropositive (2.1%, 95%CI 1.39–3.16%); 12 were anti-HDV IgM positive and 15 HDV RNA positive. No patient with equivocal anti-HDV serology had detectable HDV RNA. Five HDV seropositive patients were intravenous drug users (22.7%); 17/22 were from abroad with 11/22 (50%) from sub-Saharan Africa. HDV seropositive patients had poorer laboratory parameters and were more likely to have evidence of cirrhosis. Triple infected (HIV/HBV/HDV) patients were also more likely to have cirrhosis than HIV/HBV dually infected patients. Conclusions : The prevalence of HDV in hepatitis B patients in inner city London was about 2%. The role of migration from endemic countries should be recognised.