The liver is large, complex organ, well designed for its central role in carbohydrate, protein and fat metabolism. Inflammatory disorders of the liver dominate the clinical practice of hepatology. Hepatitis implies inflammation of liver which may be due to drugs, alcohol, infections or autoimmune disease. Viral infections are the most common cause of liver inflammation i.e. viral hepatitis.

Acute viral hepatitis is defined as those cases which have acute self limited disease and a serum aspartate aminotransferase elevation of at least five fold or clinical jaundice or both. Five very different viruses make up the “classical” etiological agents responsible for acute or chronic viral hepatitis in humans.

These viruses can be considered as two distinct groups, based on several clinically and epidemiologically important characteristics: those viruses that possess a lipid containing outer viral envelope (hepatitis B, C, and D viruses: HBV, HCV, HDV) and those that do not (hepatitis A and E viruses: HAV, HEV). Clinical Chemistry 43:8(B) 1494–1499 (1997).

While HAV and HEV cause only acute hepatitis, infection with HBV, HCV or HDV frequently causes a chronic course. Ther Umsch. 1994 Aug;51(8):530-7.

Treatment options for viral hepatitis are limited and, in many cases still under investigation.