Childhood hepatitis A virus infection complicated by Bell's palsy

[Extra hepatic manifestations of hepatitis A]

Viral hepatitis A is characterized by a wide range of clinical pictures ranging from a completely unapparent infection to a fulminant, potentially fatal hepatitis or the classical icteric form. Hepatitis A can develop in an unusual way and extrahepatic manifestations (neurological, renal, haematological, cholecystitis, acute pancreatitis, vasculitis, etc.) can occasionally complicate the course of the disease. Although hepatitis A infection was identified in the early 1970s, there are few or no studies assessing the actual frequency of these complications. They have been studied mainly through clinical case reports. Currently, since the disease has become more common in adults, these complications are being increasingly observed. We present an update on extrahepatic complications during hepatitis A, which should be known by both specialist doctors (infectiologists internists, hepatologists and others) and general practitioners.

Age-period-cohort analysis of hepatitis A incidence rates in Korea from 2002 to 2012

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to evaluate the epidemiology of hepatitis A in Korea from 2002 to 2012 using age-period-cohort analyses.

METHODS

We used claims data from the Korean National Health Insurance Corporation for the entire population. Census data from 2010 were used as the standard population. The incidence of hepatitis A was assumed to have a Poisson distribution, and the models and effects were evaluated using the intrinsic estimator method, the likelihood ratio, and the Akaike information criterion.

RESULTS

The incidence of hepatitis A gradually increased until 2007 (from 17.55 to 35.72 per 100,000 population) and peaked in 2009 (177.47 per 100,000 population). The highest incidence was observed among 27-29-year-old individuals when we omitted data from 2005 to 2007. From 2005 to 2007, the peak incidence was observed among 24-26-year-old individuals, followed by 27-29-year-olds. The best model fits were observed when the age-period-cohort variables were all considered at the same time for males, females, and the whole population.

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence of hepatitis A exhibited significant age-period-cohort effects; its incidence peaked in 2009 and was especially high among Koreans 20-39 years of age. These epidemiological patterns may help predict when high incidence rates of hepatitis A may occur in developing countries during their socioeconomic development.

Association of Bell's Palsy with Hepatitis E Virus Infection: A Rare Entity

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is a common cause of acute hepatitis in India and other developing countries. The data regarding the neurologic manifestation of HEV infection are limited. The neurologic disorders including Guillain-Barré syndrome, polyradiculopathy, neuralgic amyotrophy, encephalitis, bilateral brachial neuritis, ataxia/proximal myopathy, and acute transverse myelitis have been described. Bell's palsy and other cranial nerve involvement in hepatitis A virus (HAV) and HEV infection are rare. We present the second case of Bell's palsy associated with HEV.