Skip to main content
Device Global Header

Subscribe
or Renew

Advanced Search

This article is available to subscribers. Subscribe now. Already have an account? Sign in

Review ArticleDrug Therapy

Vaccines to Prevent Viral Hepatitis

List of authors.
  • Stanley M. Lemon, M.D.,
  • and David L. Thomas, M.D., M.P.H.

At least five different viruses cause hepatitis in humans. Two — hepatitis A virus (HAV) and hepatitis E virus (HEV) — are nonenveloped RNA viruses that are spread predominantly by fecal–oral transmission and cause acute self-limited disease.1,2 The others — hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis delta virus (HDV), and hepatitis C virus (HCV) — are enveloped viruses with various tendencies to cause persistent infection, chronic hepatitis, and, in the case of HBV and HCV, hepatocellular carcinoma.35 Fecal–oral transmission does not occur with these viruses, because their lipid envelopes preclude the passage of viable virus from the liver through . . .

Continue reading this article

Select an option below:

Create your account to get 2 free subscriber-only articles each month.

Get Free Access Now Subscribe For Full Access

Already have an account?

Sign In

Print subscriber?

Activate your online access.

Funding and Disclosures

Supported in part by grants from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (RO1-AI32599 and U19-AI40035) and the National Institute of Drug Abuse (DA00232).

We are indebted to Drs. M.J. Alter and H.S. Margolis for their review of this manuscript.

Author Affiliations

From the Department of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill (S.M.L.), and the Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore (D.L.T.).

Address reprint requests to Dr. Lemon at CB#7030, 547 Burnett-Womack, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7030.

Print Subscriber? Activate your online access.