Background: Acute viral hepatitis due to hepatitis A virus is a self-limited illness that infrequently has a severe clinical course.
Methods: We analyzed the virological characteristics of acute hepatitis A in a patient with a severe clinical presentation (peak total and conjugated bilirubin levels, 65.5 mg/dL and 40.1 mg/dL, respectively) and a course of disease that lasted 7 months.
Results: Hepatitis A virus sequencing revealed coinfection with 2 subgenotypes of hepatitis A virus (Ia and Ib) as etiological factors of the illness.
Conclusions: Hepatitis A virus Ia and Ib coinfection may have accounted for the prolonged and severe course of illness.