Hepatitis C and leptospirosis: simultaneous acute infections or recurrence of occult hepatitis C. (1st July 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ferraz, Rita Veiga; Pereira, Nuno Rocha; Carvalho, Cláudia; Sarmento, António
• Is Part Of: BMJ case reports. Volume 2015
• Publication Date: 2015-07-01
• Subjects: Medicine -- Case studies -- Periodicals; 610.5
• DOI: 10.1136/bcr-2015-209929
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1757-790X

Abstract

Abstract : People who inject drugs are vulnerable to several infections. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case report of a simultaneous diagnosis of leptospirosis and acute infection or recurrence of occult hepatitis C in an HIV-infected drug user. We report a case of a 47-year-old Caucasian man with HIV infection, on antiretroviral therapy, and with a history of hepatitis C (positive anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HCV RNA persistently negative) who was admitted with febrile acute hepatitis. He was a former injecting drug user, on opioid substitution therapy, who relapsed to injection drug use 3 weeks prior to admission. Work up revealed positive HCV RNA and Leptospira DNA in his urine. Four weeks later he had an undetectable HCV load, and also at 6 months of follow-up. This case highlights the presence of two concomitant infectious aetiologies of acute hepatitis in an HIV-infected drug user.