Hepatitis D

How is the infection diagnosed?

The healthcare provider may suspect hepatitis D after doing a physical examination and checking liver function tests. Another blood test, often drawn at the same time as the liver function tests, can confirm that hepatitis D is the cause of the symptoms.

Chronic hepatitis can be diagnosed with a liver biopsy. Liver biopsy specimens can be graded in terms of severity. Liver biopsies may have to be done repeatedly to detect progression of the disease or response to therapy.