Publication Name	World Journal of Gastroenterology
Manuscript ID	115964
Country	India

Category	Microbiology
Manuscript Type	Meta-Analysis
Article Title	Prevalence of hepatitis-D virus in hepatitis B surface antigen-positive patients of India: A meta-analysis (research on behalf of ESGVH)
Manuscript Source	Unsolicited Manuscript
All Author List	Nitu Mishra, Anish Gupta, Ashutosh K Singh, Juhi Nagar, Ashish K Vyas, Vikas Yadav, Greeshma C Ravindran, Megha K Pandey, Irfan F Corovic, Uday Mandal, Rajnarayan R Tiwari, Pradyumna K Mishra, Sumit K Rawat and Ram K Nema
Funding Agency and Grant Number
Corresponding Author	Ram K Nema, Division of Environmental Biotechnology, Genetics and Molecular Biology, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Bhopal Bypass Road, Bhopal 462030, Madhya Pradesh, India. ramkumarnema@gmail.com
Key Words	Hepatitis D virus; Hepatitis B surface antigen; Prevalence; Co-infection; Epidemiology; Public health; Risk factors
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.
Citation	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. P Prevalence of hepatitis-D virus in hepatitis B surface antigen-positive patients of India: A meta-analysis (research on behalf of ESGVH). World J Gastroenterol 2026; In press

Received	2025-10-31 06:42
Peer-Review Started	2025-10-31 06:43
First Decision by Editorial Office Director	2025-12-03 10:24
Return for Revision	2025-12-03 10:24
Revised	2025-12-16 12:43
Publication Fee Transferred
Second Decision by Editor	2026-03-20 02:43
Second Decision by Editor-in-Chief
Final Decision by Editorial Office Director	2026-03-20 12:08
Articles in Press	2026-03-20 12:08
Edit the Manuscript by Language Editor
Typeset the Manuscript

ISSN	1007-9327 (print) and 2219-2840 (online)
Open Access	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.
Copyright	©Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2026. No commercial re-use. See Permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
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