[The clinical picture and outcome of acute delta infection]

A total of 60 patients were observed with acute hepatitis delta defined at examination of 200 adult subjects with acute HBsAg-positive hepatitis. Moderate and severe forms of the disease occurred more frequently, lethality reached 13.3%. An unfavorable prognosis was related to a short-term prejaundice period with intoxication (high body temperature, head ache, vertigo, recurrent vomiting, IgM antibodies presence in the serum at the height of the disease). No patients achieved cure within 9 months following the discharge from hospital. The process acquired the form of long-term convalescence with transformation into chronic hepatitis delta.