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An Update on the Hepatitis E Virus

  • Liver (B Bacon, Section Editor)
  • Published:
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Abstract

There have been recent key advances in the understanding of hepatitis E virus infection. Since the early 1980s, when the virus was first discovered, hepatitis E has been described as a disease that is endemic only in the African and Asian subcontinents, a disease that is transmitted via the fecal–oral route, and a disease that causes an acute illness that typically resolves, with the exception of the third trimester of pregnancy, when infection can be deadly. We now know that genotype 3 is likely a porcine zoonotic disease that is quite prevalent in certain industrialized nations. Hepatitis E carries high morbidity and mortality in patients with underlying liver disease and can become a chronic infection that causes fibrosis in immunocompromised hosts. Lastly, two vaccines have been developed and studied in clinical trials, with excellent results.

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Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: •• Of major importance

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No potential conflicts of interest relevant to this article were reported.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Division of Hepatology, Schiff Center for Liver Diseases, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA

    Seth N. Sclair & Eugene R. Schiff

  2. Schiff Center for Liver Diseases, Jackson Medical Towers, 1500 NW 12th Ave Suite E-1101, Miami, FL, 33136, USA

    Seth N. Sclair & Eugene R. Schiff

Authors
  1. Seth N. Sclair
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  2. Eugene R. Schiff
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Correspondence to Seth N. Sclair or Eugene R. Schiff.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Liver

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Sclair, S.N., Schiff, E.R. An Update on the Hepatitis E Virus. Curr Gastroenterol Rep 15, 304 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11894-012-0304-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11894-012-0304-2

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