THE STATUS OF OXIDATIVE STRESS AND ANTIOXIDANT DEFENSE IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC HEPATITIS D

Abstract

Introduction: Oxidative stress is increasingly recognized as an important factor in the progression of chronic liver disease of varying etiologies and antioxidants are utilized in the treatment of some of them. Chronic viral hepatitis D continues to be a significant health problem in certain regions of the world. Rates of response to currently proposed treatments are rather low. The aim of this study was to investigate oxidative stress in patients with chronic viral hepatitis D. Materials and methods: A total of 91 patients with chronic hepatitis D virus infection were included in this study (mean age: 42.2 +/- 11.7). In addition, 40 healthy volunteers were included in the study to form the control group. Patients were divided into two main sub-groups as cirrhotic (n=30) and non-cirrhotic (n=61) groups. Blood samples were taken from both patients and control subjects and compared for total oxidant status (TOS), total anti-oxidant status (TAS) and oxidative stress index (OSI). Results: TOS levels were significantly higher in the patients compared to the control sub-jects (p<0.001). Moreover, TOS levels were higher in the cirrhotic patients compared to the non-cirrhotic patients (p=0.006). TAS levels were significantly lower in the patients compared to the control subjects (p=0.003). OSI levels were significantly higher in the patients compared to the control subjects (p<0.001). Moreover, OSI levels were higher in the cirrhotic patients compared to the non-cirrhotic patients (p<0.05). Conclusion: These results are supportive of the role of oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of chronic viral hepatitis D. Antioxidant therapies might be considered in patients with chronic viral hepatitis D considering the presence of oxidative stress in these patients.