Skip to main content
PMC home page
British Medical Journal (Clinical Research Ed.) logoLink to British Medical Journal (Clinical Research Ed.)
. 1983 Dec 10;287(6407):1743–1745. doi: 10.1136/bmj.287.6407.1743

Prevalence and incidence of hepatitis A among male homosexuals.

R A Coutinho, P Albrecht-van Lent, N Lelie, N Nagelkerke, H Kuipers, T Rijsdijk
PMCID: PMC1549890  PMID: 6416573

Abstract

In a study of 689 male homosexuals 290 (42%) were found to have antibodies to hepatitis A virus. The 399 men who did not have antibodies were followed up for up to 690 days, and 35 cases of hepatitis A were detected. The attack rate at the end of the study was 14%. The incidence climbed steadily, indicating that the cases of hepatitis A did not occur in clusters. Statistical analysis showed that the prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis A virus was significantly correlated with the duration of homosexual activity (p less than 0.006), and this was independent of age. The incidence of hepatitis A was found to be correlated with the number of different sexual partners in the preceding six months. It is concluded that hepatitis A is a sexually transmitted disease among homosexual men in countries with a low rate of exposure to hepatitis A during childhood.

Full text

PDF
1743

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Christenson B., Broström C., Böttiger M., Hermanson J., Weiland O., Ryd G., Berg J. V., Sjöblom R. An epidemic outbreak of hepatitis A among homosexual men in Stockholm. Hepatitis A, a special hazard for the male homosexual subpopulation in Sweden. Am J Epidemiol. 1982 Oct;116(4):599–607. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a113442. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Corey L., Holmes K. K. Sexual transmission of hepatitis A in homosexual men: incidence and mechanism. N Engl J Med. 1980 Feb 21;302(8):435–438. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198002213020804. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Coutinho R. A., Lelie N., Albrecht-Van Lent P., Reerink-Brongers E. E., Stoutjesdijk L., Dees P., Nivard J., Huisman J., Reesink H. W. Efficacy of a heat inactivated hepatitis B vaccine in male homosexuals: outcome of a placebo controlled double blind trial. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1983 Apr 23;286(6374):1305–1308. doi: 10.1136/bmj.286.6374.1305. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Frösner G. G., Papaevangelou G., Bütler R., Iwarson S., Lindholm A., Couroucé-Pauty A., Haas H., Deinhardt F. Antibody against hepatitis A in seven European countries. I. Comparison of prevalence data in different age groups. Am J Epidemiol. 1979 Jul;110(1):63–69. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a112788. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Høybye G., Skinhøj P., Hentzer B., Faber V., Mathiesen L. An epidemic of acute viral hepatitis in male homosexuals. Etiology and clinical characteristics. Scand J Infect Dis. 1980;12(4):241–244. doi: 10.3109/inf.1980.12.issue-4.01. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Lumey L. H., Kok J., Coutinho R. A. Screening for syphilis among homosexual men in bars and saunas in Amsterdam. Br J Vener Dis. 1982 Dec;58(6):402–404. doi: 10.1136/sti.58.6.402. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. McFarlane E. S., Embil J. A., Manuel F. R., Thiébaux H. J. Antibodies to hepatitis A antigen in relation to the number of lifetime sexual partners in patients attending an STD clinic. Br J Vener Dis. 1981 Feb;57(1):58–61. doi: 10.1136/sti.57.1.58. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Schenzle D., Dietz K., Frösner G. G. Antibody against hepatitis A in seven European countries. II. Statistical analysis of cross-sectional surveys. Am J Epidemiol. 1979 Jul;110(1):70–76. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a112790. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Schreeder M. T., Thompson S. E., Hadler S. C., Berquist K. R., Zaidi A., Maynard J. E., Ostrow D., Judson F. N., Braff E. H., Nylund T. Hepatitis B in homosexual men: prevalence of infection and factors related to transmission. J Infect Dis. 1982 Jul;146(1):7–15. doi: 10.1093/infdis/146.1.7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Szmuness W., Dienstag J. L., Purcell R. H., Harley E. J., Stevens C. E., Wong D. C. Distribution of antibody to hepatitis a antigen in urban adult populations. N Engl J Med. 1976 Sep 30;295(14):755–759. doi: 10.1056/NEJM197609302951404. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Szmuness W., Much I., Prince A. M., Hoofnagle J. H., Cherubin C. E., Harley E. J., Block G. H. On the role of sexual behavior in the spread of hepatitis B infection. Ann Intern Med. 1975 Oct;83(4):489–495. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-83-4-489. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from British Medical Journal (Clinical research ed.) are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES