Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2006. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.Dear Doc,
Back in 1986 I donated blood at the Red Cross and discovered that I had been exposed to Hepatitis B. Since then I have seen many doctors who say that I have the antibody and the virus has cleared my system. In fact, my HIV doctor asked if I had been inoculated against the virus. I told him no, but that I had been exposed back in the 80's.
Q: Does this mean I am co-infected with Hepatitis B? My liver function is normal. I was under the impression that 95% of people clear the virus to never have problems again. Is this correct? Thank you in advance for your help in this matter.
If you have antibodies to Hepatitis B surface antigen, you probably had hepatitis B in the past, and have completely eliminated the virus from your body. In this scenario, you are not co-infected. I'm sure that your doctor would have told you if you had chronic infection.
In a small percentage of hepatitis b cases, as you know, there is chronic disease. Surface antigen antibodies are not produced, and core antigen antibodies may remain elevated.
Just given your doctor's reaction and answer, I'm pretty certain, even with incomplete information, that you are not co-infected, meaning currently with active hepatitis b, though you had hepatitis b in the past.
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