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HCV-RNA occurrence in saliva of odontoiatric HCV seropositive patients
E Savoldi1, F Gargiulo, M G Marinone
1Odontoiatric Clinic, Università degli Studi, Brescia, Italy.
Background:
HCV-RNA occurrence in saliva of patients suffering from C hepatitis induced to consider saliva as a possible diffusion mean of this disease.
Methods:
Saliva and blood samples from 32 C hepatitis seropositive patients, followed for odontostomatologic problems in Odontoiatric Clinic of Brescia University were obtained. In every blood and saliva sample HCV-RNA concentration was evaluated following HCV-RNA 2.0 Assay (bDNA) Quantiplex test (Chiron), in Microbiology Institute of Brescia University.
Results:
All patients showing HCV-RNA in serum presented virus in saliva also; two patients with negative HCV-RNA serum presented virus in saliva. In latter cases, we supposed that viral concentration in serum was under sensibility threshold of employed method.
Conclusions:
Saliva appears an easily and not invasively obtainable medium for epidemiological studies on HCV diffusion in humans. Its role in C hepatitis transmission, on the contrary, has not been cleared till now.