Hepatitis B Core Antibody General Clinical Tests


Test Name Method	Hepatitis B Core Antibody (HBc, Total Anti- HBc, IgM-anti- HBc Total (IgG+IgM) Anti-HBc Anti-µ capture
Specimen Requirements	Serum Stable for 7 d at RT and indefinitely at 4° C or – 20°C.
Ref. Range Conventional International Recommended Units	Negative
Chemical Interfaces In Vivo Effects	None Found
Diagnostic Information	Hepatitis B core protein forms the capsid of the virus and is a potent immunogen. The anti-HBc assay is the most important serological test to document Hepatitis B infection and can be postitive in the face of a Negative HBsAg. A positive total (IgG+IgM) anti-HBc, as performed by the current commercial qualitative assays, is only positive to document acute Hepatitis B.
Remarks	Low levels of IgM-anti-HBc can sometimes be present in chronic Hepatitis B and can confuse the diagnosis. In these cases it is necessary to retest patients after several months (or years) to differentiate acute fromchronic infection.

References:
Clinical Guide to Laboratory Tests, third edition.