Long-term persistence of hepatitis C virus antibodies in a single source outbreak

The occurrence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus (HCV) was investigated in 81 patients who developed hepatitis non-A, non-B (HNANB) after parenteral administration of contaminated immunoglobulin to prevent Rh sensitization. Sera from 74 of the 81 patients (89.9%) were anti-HCV positive at either 6-12 months or 9-10 years after administration of immunoglobulin. Sera were not available from any patients at either of the times: however, 52 of 56 sera (92.9%) were anti-HCV positive 6-12 months after use of immunoglobulin, and anti-HCV was present in 45 of 65 sera (69.2%) 9-10 years after immunoglobulin treatment. Of the latter, only two of 13 (15.4%) sera from patients who recovered from hepatitis were anti-HCV positive, whereas 43 of 52 patients (82.7%) with chronic disease were anti-HCV positive. The ELISA using a recombinant antigen was found a good detector as marker for a HCV infection because 90% of patients infected by a common source became anti-HCV positive. However, 10 years after infection most patients who did not develop chronic disease no longer had detectable antibodies.