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World J Gastroenterol. Jun 7, 2026; 32(21): 115964
Published online Jun 7, 2026. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v32.i21.115964
Published online Jun 7, 2026. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v32.i21.115964
Prevalence of hepatitis-D virus in hepatitis B surface antigen-positive patients of India: A meta-analysis (research on behalf of ESGVH)
Nitu Mishra, Multidisciplinary Research Unit, Bundelkhand Medical College Sagar, Sagar 470001, Madhya Pradesh, India
Anish Gupta, Department of Oral Pathology and Microbiology, People’s University, Bhopal 462025, Madhya Pradesh, India
Ashutosh K Singh, Juhi Nagar, Division of EBGMB, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal 462030, Madhya Pradesh, India
Ashish K Vyas, Amrita Research Center Delhi NCR, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Faridabad Campus, Faridabad 110070, Haryāna, India
Vikas Yadav, Uday Mandal, Department of Environmental Health and Epidemiology, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal 462030, Madhya Pradesh, India
Greeshma C Ravindran, Division of Biostatistics, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal 462030, Madhya Pradesh, India
Megha K Pandey, Department of Translational Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhopal 462020, Madhya Pradesh, India
Irfan F Corovic, Center for Molecular Medicine and Stem Cell Research, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac 34000, Serbia
Rajnarayan R Tiwari, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal 462030, Madhya Pradesh, India
Pradyumna K Mishra, Ram K Nema, Division of Environmental Biotechnology, Genetics and Molecular Biology, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal 462030, Madhya Pradesh, India
Sumit K Rawat, Department of Microbiology, Bundelkhand Medical College Sagar, Sagar 470001, Madhya Pradesh, India
Co-corresponding authors: Irfan F Corovic and Ram K Nema.
Author contributions: Mishra N, Singh AK, Nagar J and Vyas AK were involved in data curation, investigation, and methodology; Yadav V, and Ravindran GC contributed to data analysis and visualization; Pandey MK, and Mandal U participated in the investigation and methodology; Rawat SK and Gupta A contributed to writing review and editing; Tiwari RR contributed to project administration, provided resources, and participated in writing, review, and editing; Nema RK and Corovic IF contributed to the conceptualization, methodology, and project administration, wrote the first draft of the manuscript, and they are co-corresponding authors; Mishra N, Gupta A, Singh AK, Nagar J, Vyas AK, Yadav V, Ravindran GC, Pandey MK, Corovic IF, Mandal U, Tiwari RR, Mishra PK, Rawat SK, Nema RK and ESCMID Study Group for Viral Hepatitis (ESGVH) members commented on previous versions of the manuscript, read and approved the final manuscript.
AI contribution statement: AI tools (ChatGPT and Grammarly) were used solely for linguistic refinement and formatting assistance. No AI tool was involved in the generation of research data, interpretation of results, or formulation of conclusions. All AI-generated outputs were critically reviewed and revised by the authors.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Corresponding author: Ram K Nema, PhD, Scientist, Division of Environmental Biotechnology, Genetics and Molecular Biology, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal Bypass Road, Bhopal 462030, Madhya Pradesh, India.
Received: October 31, 2025
Revised: December 16, 2025
Accepted: March 20, 2026
Published online: June 7, 2026
Processing time: 207 Days and 17.1 Hours
Revised: December 16, 2025
Accepted: March 20, 2026
Published online: June 7, 2026
Processing time: 207 Days and 17.1 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This systematic review and meta-analysis provides the first comprehensive national estimate of hepatitis D virus (HDV) prevalence among hepatitis B surface antigen-positive individuals in India. Analyzing 30 studies with 5365 participants, the pooled HDV prevalence was 5.05%, highlighting substantial regional and methodological variability. The study identifies key drivers of heterogeneity, including diagnostic methods and population risk profiles, and underscores the urgent need for routine HDV screening, standardized testing protocols, and region-specific public health interventions to mitigate the burden of hepatitis B virus-HDV co-infection in India.