Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37822539›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in public health2023

Apulian infectious diseases network: survey on the prevalence of delta infection among chronic HBV carriers in Apulia.

Massimo Fasano, Michele Milella, Sergio Carbonara, Paolo Tundo, Salvatore Minniti, Giovanni Buccoliero, Anna Maria Maci, Sergio Lo Caputo, Teresa Antonia Santantonio

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in public health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
0.4field-weighted citation impact, top 33% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 2 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Diagnosed Patients With Chronic Hepatitis B and Delta Virus in Italy in 2024: An Estimation From a National Real-World Database.Liver international : official journal of the International Association for the Study of the Liver · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 6 institutions in 1 country.

Massimo FasanoInfectious Diseases Unit, Ospedale della Murgia "F. Perinei", Altamura, BA, Italy.
Michele MilellaInfectious Diseases Unit, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, University of Bari, Bari, Italy.
Sergio CarbonaraInfectious Diseases Unit, Ospedale Vittorio Emanuele II, Bisceglie, BT, Italy.
Paolo TundoInfectious Diseases Unit, Ospedale S. Caterina Novella, Galatina, LE, Italy.
Salvatore MinnitiInfectious Diseases Unit, Ospedale Perrino, Brindisi, Italy.
Giovanni BuccolieroInfectious Diseases Unit, Ospedale S. Giuseppe Moscati, Statte, TA, Italy.
Anna Maria MaciInfectious Diseases Unit, Ospedale Vito Fazzi, Lecce, Italy.
Sergio Lo CaputoInfectious Diseases Unit, Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy.
Teresa Antonia SantantonioInfectious Diseases Unit, Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy.
University of Foggia · ITAzienda Ospedaliera S.Giuseppe Moscati · ITOspedale A. Perrino · ITOspedale San Paolo · ITOspedale Vito Fazzi · ITUniversity of Bari Aldo Moro · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: The current prevalence and clinical burden of Hepatitis Delta Virus (HDV) infection in Apulia are unknown. This study aimed to define the current epidemiological scenario of delta infection and to detect difficulties in the diagnosis and clinical management of HDV patients in Apulia. Methods: From May to September 2022, a fact-finding survey was conducted at eight Infectious Diseases Units of the Apulian region; each Unit was asked to complete a questionnaire on screening and diagnosis of HDV infection and demographic, virological, and clinical characteristics of HDV patients. Results: A total of 1,461 HBsAg-positive subjects were followed up on an outpatient basis. Screening for HDV ranged from 30 to 90% of HBsAg + carriers in a single center. Overall, 952 HBsAg ± subjects (65%) were tested for HDV, and 80/952 (8.4%) were anti-HDV positive. Serum HDV RNA was detected only in 15/80 (19%) anti-HDV-positive subjects, and 12/15 patients (80%) were viremic. Sixty-five anti-HDV-positive subjects (81%) were from Italy; risk factors for HDV acquisition included the presence of HDV infection in the family (29/80 = 36%), drug addiction (12/80 = 15%), and co-infection with HCV or HIV (7/80 = 9%). Liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma were diagnosed in 41 (51%) and 4 (5%) patients, respectively. Fifty-seven patients (71%) received nucleos(t)ide analog treatment. Conclusions: The results of this survey show that HDV screening is variable and insufficient, thus real prevalence data on delta infection are lacking in Apulia. Moreover, the HDV RNA test is not available in most laboratories and is not provided by the national health system. These results underline the need for an organizational model to optimize the management of HDV patients throughout the Apulian region.

Indexed as

Chlamydia InfectionsCommunicable DiseasesHepatitis B, ChronicHepatitis DLiver NeoplasmsHepatitis B Surface AntigensHepatitis Delta VirusHumansPrevalenceRNAHepatitis B Surface AntigensRNAchronic viral hepatitisepidemiologyhepatitis B virusHepatitis Delta Virushepatocellular carcinoma

Identifiers

PMID37822539
PMCPMC10562714
OpenAlexW4387099828

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.