Frequency of hepatitis C in acute post-transfusion hepatitis after open-heart surgery: a prospective study in 1,476 patients.

Post-transfusion hepatitis was studied prospectively in 1,476 patients undergoing open-heart surgery between 1985 and 1988. Thirty-three (2.2%) patients suffered from post-transfusion hepatitis. Acute post-transfusion hepatitis was attributed to hepatitis B in one case and to hepatitis C in ten patients (0.7%). Four additional patients had preexisting serologic markers of hepatitis C. In 22 (1.5%) patients, hepatitis B or C was excluded as a cause of liver disease. Seroconversion for hepatitis C virus occurred from 3 weeks to more than 6 months after infection. Chronic hepatitis C developed in four patients. In addition, seroconversion to anti-HCV was observed in four patients with moderately elevated aminotransferases. In the control patients anti-HCV antibodies were found in 0.5%. The characteristics of acute hepatitis C after blood transfusion are shown and compared to 22 patients with acute hepatitis non-A, non-B, non-C. The etiology of these 22 cases is discussed.