Hepatitis G virus infection in haemodialysis and in peritoneal dialysis patients

The aim of this study was to detect hepatitis G virus RNA (HGV RNA) and ant ibodies against the virus envelope protein E2 (anti-E2) in 107 patients eit her on maintenance haemodialysis (n = 78) or peritoneal dialysis (n = 29) t o evaluate the prevalence of HGV infection and to establish its role in liv er disease. The total prevalence of HGV infection was of 15.4% among haemod ialysis patients, whereas it was 10.3% among peritoneal dialysis patients. HGV RNA was detected in 2 haemodialysis patients (2.6%) and in 3 peritoneal dialysis patients (10.3%). Anti-E2 was found in 10 haemodialysis patients (7.8%), whilst all peritoneal dialysis patients resulted negative. In only 1 patient the alanine aminotransferase level was elevated. This patient und erwent liver biopsy that did not reveal evidence of chronic hepatitis. The lower HGV prevalence in haemodialysis patients, when compared with data rep orted by other European authors, should be related to the lower rate of pol ytransfused patients in our series (29.5%). Multiple blood transfusions sho uld be considered as the main factor to explain the different prevalence of HGV infection among various European dialysis centres. Detection of both a ntibody and viraemia is important to establish the real rate of the infecti on.