Florence Abravanel1, Julie Pique2, Elisabeth Couturier3, Florence Nicot4, Chloé Dimeglio5, Sébastien Lhomme6, Julie Chiabrando4, Karine Saune6, Jean-Marie Péron7, Nassim Kamar8, Solène Evrard9, Henriette de Valk3, Pascal Cintas2, Jacques Izopet6. 1. UMR Inserm, U1043; UMR CNRS, U5282, Centre de Physiopathologie de Toulouse Purpan (CPTP), Toulouse, F-31300, France; CHU Toulouse, Hôpital Purpan, Laboratoire de virologie, Centre national de référence du virus de l'hépatite E, Toulouse, F-31300 France. Electronic address: abravanel.f@chu-toulouse.fr. 2. CHU Toulouse, Hôpital Purpan, Département de Neurologie, Toulouse, F-31300 France. 3. Santé Publique France, Saint Maurice, F-94415 France. 4. CHU Toulouse, Hôpital Purpan, Laboratoire de virologie, Centre national de référence du virus de l'hépatite E, Toulouse, F-31300 France. 5. CHU Toulouse, Unité de soutien méthodologique à la recherche, Toulouse, F-31300 France; Inserm U1027, Université Toulouse III, Toulouse, F-31300 France. 6. UMR Inserm, U1043; UMR CNRS, U5282, Centre de Physiopathologie de Toulouse Purpan (CPTP), Toulouse, F-31300, France; CHU Toulouse, Hôpital Purpan, Laboratoire de virologie, Centre national de référence du virus de l'hépatite E, Toulouse, F-31300 France. 7. CHU Toulouse, Hôpital Purpan, Département de Gastroentérologie, Toulouse, F-31300 France. 8. UMR Inserm, U1043; UMR CNRS, U5282, Centre de Physiopathologie de Toulouse Purpan (CPTP), Toulouse, F-31300, France; CHU de Toulouse, Hôpital Rangueil, Service de néphrologie, Dialyse et Transplantation d'Organe, Toulouse, F-31300 France. 9. CHU Toulouse, Institut Universitaire du Cancer, Département d'Anatomie et Cytologie Pathologiques, Toulouse, F-31300 France.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a major cause of acute hepatitis worldwide. However, our understanding of the source of contamination is incomplete and the frequency of neurological manifestations in still unknown. METHODS: 200 eligible cases reported to the French National Reference Center from January 2015 to December 2015 were prospectively included in this case-control study (1 case: 1 control, matched for sex, age and area of living) to investigate the risk of infection. We documented the factors associated with their HEV infection and clinical manifestations. RESULTS: The 200 HEV-infected patients included 137 who were immunocompetent and 63 immunocompromised. The factors associated with an HEV infection were contact with farm animals, eating pork liver sausage and eating unpeeled fruit. The 33 patients (16.5%) who reported neurological symptoms included 14 with neuropathic pain suggesting small fiber neuropathy, 9 with painless sensory disorders, 6 with Parsonage-Turner syndrome, one Guillain-Barre syndrome, one meningitis, one encephalitis and one diplopia. Neurological manifestations were more frequent in immunocompetent patients (22.6% vs 3.2%, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the risk of HEV transmission by the environment in industrialized countries. The higher frequency of neurological disorders in immunocompetent patients suggests pathophysiological mechanisms involving the immune system.
OBJECTIVES:Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a major cause of acute hepatitis worldwide. However, our understanding of the source of contamination is incomplete and the frequency of neurological manifestations in still unknown. METHODS: 200 eligible cases reported to the French National Reference Center from January 2015 to December 2015 were prospectively included in this case-control study (1 case: 1 control, matched for sex, age and area of living) to investigate the risk of infection. We documented the factors associated with their HEVinfection and clinical manifestations. RESULTS: The 200 HEV-infectedpatients included 137 who were immunocompetent and 63 immunocompromised. The factors associated with an HEVinfection were contact with farm animals, eating pork liver sausage and eating unpeeled fruit. The 33 patients (16.5%) who reported neurological symptoms included 14 with neuropathic pain suggesting small fiber neuropathy, 9 with painless sensory disorders, 6 with Parsonage-Turner syndrome, one Guillain-Barre syndrome, one meningitis, one encephalitis and one diplopia. Neurological manifestations were more frequent in immunocompetent patients (22.6% vs 3.2%, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the risk of HEV transmission by the environment in industrialized countries. The higher frequency of neurological disorders in immunocompetent patients suggests pathophysiological mechanisms involving the immune system.
Authors: Debin Tian; Wen Li; C Lynn Heffron; Bo Wang; Hassan M Mahsoub; Harini Sooryanarain; Anna M Hassebroek; Sherrie Clark-Deener; Tanya LeRoith; Xiang-Jin Meng Journal: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A Date: 2022-06-07 Impact factor: 12.779