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1 - Hepatitis viruses

from Section 1 - Agents

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 January 2010

Denis M. Dwyre
Affiliation:
Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology University of California Davis Medical Center Sacramento, CA USA
Paul V. Holland
Affiliation:
Clinical Professor of Medicine and Pathology, University of California Davis Medical Center Sacramento, CA USA; Scientific Director, Delta Blood Bank Stockton, CAUSA
John A. J. Barbara
Affiliation:
University of the West of England, Bristol
Fiona A. M. Regan
Affiliation:
HNSBT and Hammersmith Hospitals NHS Trust, London
Marcela Contreras
Affiliation:
University of the West of England, Bristol
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Summary

Introduction

Transmission of hepatitis through blood transfusion was first reported in 1943 (Beeson, 1943; Morgan and Williamson, 1943). Hepatitis transmitted through faecal-oral mechanisms was termed hepatitis A (‘epidemic hepatitis’), while hepatitis transmitted through blood and its derivatives (‘serum hepatitis’) was termed hepatitis B. These terms were formally adopted by the World Health Organization in the 1970s (Dienstag, 2002).

Prevention of the transmission of hepatitis by blood transfusions began with donor screening through the use of a donor questionnaire, primarily for a history of hepatitis, commonly referred to as ‘yellow jaundice’. Laboratory screening for hepatitis B virus began in 1969, with the testing of blood donors for what eventually became known as the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). Soon after regular testing of donor blood for HBsAg was initiated and tests for antibody to the hepatitis A virus became available, it became apparent that the majority of cases of transfusion-transmitted viral hepatitis were not related to hepatitis A or hepatitis B. The then undefined virus, named non-A, non-B (NANB) hepatitis virus, was believed to be the cause of a large number of transfusion-related infections. In an effort to reduce the number of transfusion-transmitted NANB viral hepatitis infections, ‘surrogate’ or substitute testing of donor blood was evaluated in the 1970s, initially in the USA.

In 1981, an association between elevated serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in blood donors and transfusion-transmitted NANB hepatitis in recipients was reported (Aach et al., 1981; Alter et al., 1981).

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  • Hepatitis viruses
    • By Denis M. Dwyre, Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology University of California Davis Medical Center Sacramento, CA USA, Paul V. Holland, Clinical Professor of Medicine and Pathology, University of California Davis Medical Center Sacramento, CA USA; Scientific Director, Delta Blood Bank Stockton, CAUSA
  • Edited by John A. J. Barbara, University of the West of England, Bristol, Fiona A. M. Regan, Marcela Contreras, University of the West of England, Bristol
  • Book: Transfusion Microbiology
  • Online publication: 12 January 2010
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511545245.005
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  • Hepatitis viruses
    • By Denis M. Dwyre, Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology University of California Davis Medical Center Sacramento, CA USA, Paul V. Holland, Clinical Professor of Medicine and Pathology, University of California Davis Medical Center Sacramento, CA USA; Scientific Director, Delta Blood Bank Stockton, CAUSA
  • Edited by John A. J. Barbara, University of the West of England, Bristol, Fiona A. M. Regan, Marcela Contreras, University of the West of England, Bristol
  • Book: Transfusion Microbiology
  • Online publication: 12 January 2010
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511545245.005
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Hepatitis viruses
    • By Denis M. Dwyre, Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology University of California Davis Medical Center Sacramento, CA USA, Paul V. Holland, Clinical Professor of Medicine and Pathology, University of California Davis Medical Center Sacramento, CA USA; Scientific Director, Delta Blood Bank Stockton, CAUSA
  • Edited by John A. J. Barbara, University of the West of England, Bristol, Fiona A. M. Regan, Marcela Contreras, University of the West of England, Bristol
  • Book: Transfusion Microbiology
  • Online publication: 12 January 2010
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511545245.005
Available formats
×