Correlation of serum alanine aminotransferase and hepatitis C viral RNA levels in Bangladeshi hepatitis patients

Abstract

Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the second largest causative agent for liver infection (0.2-1% general population) in Bangladesh. In hepatitis, both serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase are elevated without showing correlation of disease severity. However, serum ALT is the commonest and reliable biochemical parameter for liver function test. Hence, the correlation study of ALT and HCV RNA levels is warranted to observe prospective treatment outcomes through biochemical assay. Objective: The investigation of serum ALT and HCV RNA levels in acute and chronic hepatitis patients. Methods: Whole blood was collected from 112 patients. Serum ALT levels were measured biochemically, serum antibody by EIA and HCV-RNA was confirmed by NAT. Results: Among the enrolled hepatitis patients, there were comparable demographic characteristics irrespective of their normal or elevated ALT levels. Although 59% patients were HCV RNA undetectable, the higher ALT levels were significantly correlated with HCV RNA positive patients (p=0.0015). The latter patients group was mostly infected with genotype 3 (67%) than genotype 1 (22%) and other genotypes (11%). Conclusion: The confirmatory test and genotyping are essential to determine the optimal duration of therapy.