Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Virol. Mar 25, 2026; 15(1): 118225
Published online Mar 25, 2026. doi: 10.5501/wjv.v15.i1.118225
Published online Mar 25, 2026. doi: 10.5501/wjv.v15.i1.118225
Bone health and chronic viral infections: A narrative literature review
Jelena S Jadzic, Center of Bone Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade 11000, Serbia
Andreja B Baljozovic, Institute of Orthopedics Banjica, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade 11000, Serbia
Ljubica D Simic, Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade 11000, Serbia
Author contributions: Jadzic JS contributed to conceptualization, data visualization, original manuscript draft and project administration; Jadzic JS, Baljozovic AB and Simic LD contributed to data acquisition; Baljozovic AB and Simic LD reviewed and edited the manuscript.
Supported by the Ministry of Science of the Republic of Serbia, No. 451-03-4551/2024-04/18 and No. 451-03-137/2025-03/200110.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Corresponding author: Jelena S Jadzic, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Postdoctoral Researcher, Center of Bone Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Dr. Subotica 4/2, Belgrade 11000, Serbia. jelena.jadzic@med.bg.ac.rs
Received: December 28, 2025
Revised: January 25, 2026
Accepted: March 5, 2026
Published online: March 25, 2026
Processing time: 76 Days and 19.4 Hours
Revised: January 25, 2026
Accepted: March 5, 2026
Published online: March 25, 2026
Processing time: 76 Days and 19.4 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Chronic viral infections, such as human immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis B and hepatitis C mono- and coinfection, negatively impact bone health leading to osteopenia, osteoporosis, and increased bone fragility at an earlier age. However, many questions remain unanswered, underscoring the need for further research into the etiopathogenetic mechanisms underlying multiscale determinants of bone strength to guide more effective, personalized treatments and preventive modalities for these individuals.