Chronic hepatitis infected with hepatitis GB virus type C/hepatitis G virus presenting as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis.

A 68-year-old man with moderate liver dysfunction diagnosed with atypical pneumonia showed serum alanine aminotransferase and gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase levels which revealed a sustained abnormality over six months. Hepatitis GB virus type C/hepatitis G virus demonstrated in his serum by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Liver histology showed steatohepatitis typically observed in alcoholic hepatitis without a remarkable drinking history. This case suggests that hepatitis GB virus type C/hepatitis G virus may induce chronic hepatitis and that there may be cases with chronic hepatitis induced by this virus in patients who have been diagnosed with alcoholic liver disease, even in cases with typical histology of alcoholic hepatitis.