الفهرس 
IntroductionOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Acute viral hepatitis (AVH) is a systemic infection predominantly affecting the liver. It is most often caused by viruses that are hepatotropic (hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E). Hepatitis A virus (HAV) is an RNA-containing virus of the Picornaviridae family. The key feature is that it is a self-limiting disease. Management of HAV should therefore be supportive. Chronic hepatitis B virus infection is the most common cause of liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Two major approaches for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B exist: Immune-based therapies such as pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN) and antiviral nucleoside or nucleotide analogs (NAs). Acute hepatitis C, if diagnosed, can be cured in most cases whereas chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is resistant to treatment in almost half of the patients. Therapy of CHC has evolved from interferon alpha (IFNα) monotherapy to the use of a polyethylene glycol modified form of INFα, called pegylated IFNα (peg INFα), together with the nucleoside analogue ribavirin. Hepatitis D virus infection can occur either as a co-infection with HBV or as a superinfection in those with chronic HBV. Hepatitis E virus spreads via the faecal-oral route; in most cases it presents as a self-limiting acute hepatitis and does not cause chronic liver disease. It differs from hepatitis A in that infection during pregnancy is associated with the development of acute liver failure, which has a high mortality.