Non A, non B hepatitis in the aged.

In order to study the clinical picture of non A, non B hepatitis in the elderly, a retrospective study was carried out in the two main hospitals in Jerusalem. Thirty-six patients with acute viral hepatitis, older than 65, have been hospitalized between the years 1982-1988. Seventy-two percent were diagnosed as non A, non B hepatitis. All patients were symptomatic and the main symptoms were abdominal pain, fever and jaundice. Thirty percent of the patients had marked cholestasis, while the disease was uneventful in 96% of the cases. Non A, non B hepatitis is the main type of viral hepatitis in the aged and should be suspected in patients with abdominal pain, fever and cholestasis.