Narciso-Schiavon JL, Schiavon LL. Autoantibodies in chronic hepatitis C: A clinical perspective. World J Hepatol 2015; 7(8): 1074-1085 [PMID: 26052396 DOI: 10.4254/wjh.v7.i8.1074]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Janaína Luz Narciso-Schiavon, MD, PhD, Department of Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology Division, Federal University of Santa Catarina, R. Prof. Ma Flora Pausewang s/no, 3º andar, Trindade, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina 88040-900, Brazil. janaina.narciso@uol.com.br
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Review
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Hepatol. May 18, 2015; 7(8): 1074-1085 Published online May 18, 2015. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v7.i8.1074
Autoantibodies in chronic hepatitis C: A clinical perspective
Janaína Luz Narciso-Schiavon, Leonardo de Lucca Schiavon
Janaína Luz Narciso-Schiavon, Leonardo de Lucca Schiavon, Department of Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology Division, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina 88040-900, Brazil
Author contributions: Both authors contributed to this manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest: None declared.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Janaína Luz Narciso-Schiavon, MD, PhD, Department of Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology Division, Federal University of Santa Catarina, R. Prof. Ma Flora Pausewang s/no, 3º andar, Trindade, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina 88040-900, Brazil. janaina.narciso@uol.com.br
Telephone: +55-48-37219149 Fax: +55-48-37219014
Received: September 26, 2014 Peer-review started: September 28, 2014 First decision: December 17, 2014 Revised: January 16, 2015 Accepted: February 4, 2015 Article in press: February 9, 2015 Published online: May 18, 2015
Abstract
Non-organ-specific autoantibodies and thyroid autoantibodies have been frequently found in chronic carriers of hepatitis C virus (HCV). With respect to endomysial antibodies and tissue transglutaminase, it is controversial whether the prevalence of gluten-related seromarkers is higher in patients with HCV. In such cases, in addition to acknowledging any currently existing autoimmune disease, recognizing the risk of the patient developing an autoimmune disease during interferon (IFN)-based treatment must be a principle concern. From a clinical point-of-view, the presence of autoantibodies arouses suspicion that an autoimmune disease may be present or may be precipitated by IFN-based HCV treatment. In this paper, we review the prevalence of autoantibodies in individuals with hepatitis C, the clinical significance of these autoantibodies, and the approach recommended for such situations.
Core tip: We review the prevalence of Non-organ-specific autoantibodies, thyroid autoantibodies, and gluten-related seromarkers and their significance in predicting autoimmune diseases in individuals with hepatitis C. Autoantibodies’ importance for treatment choice and possible complications due to their presence during interferon-based treatment are appraised.
