Chronic hepatitis E: knowing what to look for, so it can always be found.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection constitutes a leading cause of waterborne epidemics of acute hepatitis in developing countries, mostly in Southeast Asia and Africa. In these areas, the seroprevalence for HEV antibodies in the general population may be as high as 20-40%, and HEV genotypes 1 or 2 are responsible for an estimated 20 million incident infections every year. Most cases are non or mildly symptomatic, but mortality may rise to 30% in certain risk groups as the elderly, patients with chronic conditions, or pregnant women.