Prevalence of Hepatitis D Virus among People Attending the Antiretroviral Clinic and the Effect on the Liver Function Enzymes

Hepatitis D virus is an incomplete RNA virus requiring the assistance of the hepatitis B virus, specifically the HBsAg, to be infectious in humans. This study was designed to determine the prevalence of HDV among HIV patients and the effect on liver enzymes. The study was conducted at the Rivers state University Teaching hospital, Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Blood samples were obtained through vein puncture from 93 adults of which 41(44%) were males while 52(56%) were females between the ages 18 and 70 years attending the antiretroviral clinic and CD4+ cell count was also obtained. The samples were preserved at -20ºC.  Each of the samples was tested using a SWE-Care rapid strip (China) for the presence of HBsAg. HDV antibody was detected using a Dia. Pro ELISA kit (Italy). The AST, ALT and ALP were determined. SPSS 21 was used to analyze the data and P values were determined. From the total samples collected, 7(7.5%) of them were positive to the HBsAg test of which 3(3.2%) were males, while 4(4.3%) of them were females. Of the 7 people positive to the HBsAg, 6(6.4%) were positive to the HDV antibody with 3(3.2%) females and 3(3.2%) males. There was significant depletion of the CD4+ cells across the groups. For the liver function test, the P values were ˃ 0.05 for AST, ALT and ˂ 0.05 for ALP. The HDV infection from the study was not gender, nor age based and suggests a negative impact on the CD4 cells.  The liver function enzyme analysis, suggest higher risk of hypertension in HIV/HBV/HDV infection.