Baseline features of patients with chronic HBV infection according to the presence or absence of HGV-RNA sequences in serum
| Characteristics | HGV-RNA negative (n=102) | HGV-RNA positive (n=9) | p Value |
| Age (y) | 41 (13) | 36 (5) | NS |
| Sex (male/female) | 86/16 | 6/3 | NS |
| Presumed source of infection | NS | ||
| Blood transfusion | 1 (1%) | 1 (11%) | |
| Addiction to i.v. drugs | 2 (2%) | 1 (11%) | |
| Intrafamilial | 19 (19%) | 1 (11%) | |
| Male homosexuality | 6 (5%) | 4 (44%) | |
| Unknown | 74 (67%) | 2 (22%) | |
| WBC count (×109/l) | 5.9 (1.8) | 5.5 (1.7) | NS |
| Platelet count (×109/l) | 156 (47) | 163 (61) | NS |
| AST (IU/l) | 70 (54) | 63 (29) | NS |
| ALT (IU/l) | 125 (118) | 111 (91) | NS |
| γ-glutamyl transferase (IU/l) | 45 (47) | 28 (7) | NS |
| Bilirubin (mg/dl) | 0.8 (0.3) | 0.6 (0.4) | NS |
| Degree of histological activity | NS | ||
| Mild hepatitis | 16 (23%) | 2 (29%) | |
| Moderate hepatitis | 22 (31%) | 1 (14%) | |
| Severe hepatitis | 22 (31%) | 3 (43%) | |
| Liver cirrhosis | 8 (11%) | 1 (14%) | |
| Other virological markers | NS | ||
| HBV-DNA positive | 64 (63%) | 4/9 (44%) | NS |
| Anti-HDV positive | 2 (2%) | 1/9 (11%) | NS |
| Anti-HCV positive | 11 (13%) | 2/9 (22%) | NS |
Quantitative variables are expressed as mean (SD). Categorical variables are expressed as n (%).