Occult hepatitis B infection (OBI) is the presence of replication-competent DNA of the hepatitis B virus in the blood or liver of individuals who display a negative test for hepatitis B surface antigen. There are many clinical implications of OBI, including blood product transfusion, the occurrence of cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and liver transplantation. OBI is associated with the development of hepatocellular carcinoma and might influence the progression of the disease, and the response of chronic hepatitis C to the treatment. Thus, this review was conducted to assess the clinical implications of OBI by reviewing the previous studies conducted on this subject. Electronic databases, including PubMed, BioMed Central, Scopus, Elsevier, Springer, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Science Direct, were revised for articles published between 2013 and 2023. A total of 2,880 articles were obtained, and only ten articles were found eligible and were included in the final analysis. There was heterogeneity in findings between the included studies; however, it was concluded that OBI could cause the progression to HCC and cause deterioration in HCV patients based on the presence of additive risk factors.
Key words: OBI, HCC, HCV, Clinical implications, Review.
|
