Occult hepatitis B in kidney transplants recipients and donors from Western Mexico

Occult hepatitis B virus infection (OBI) is defined as the presence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA in serum and/or liver from HBsAg-negative subjects. Our aim was to determine OBI frequency in serum and genomic DNA in patients undergoing renal transplant and their cognate donors in a selected population from Western Mexico.

Blood samples were obtained from 94 donors and their cognate recipients (188 participants) before kidney transplantation. Identification of HBV DNA was carried-out by nested (S-region) and semi-nested (Pol-region) PCR in both genomic and serum DNA samples from 188 participants at pre-surgical stage and from a subset of 73 recipients at three-month follow-up.

HBV-DNA was not detected in either genomic or serum DNA samples from recipients or donors prior to transplantation. After three-months of follow-up, 2 out of 73 (2.7%, 95% CI: 0.9-11.9%) recipients were positive to HBV-DNA (Pol-region) in genomic DNA samples using a high sensitivity Taq DNA polymerase.

OBI incidence in recipients of kidney transplant may be higher than previously recognized. Detection of HBV-DNA was higher in genomic DNA than in serum samples using a high sensitivity Taq DNA polymerase. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report regarding this specific topic in Mexicans.