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Risk factors
By Mayo Clinic staffAutoimmune hepatitis is uncommon. Having one or more risk factors for the disease doesn't mean that you'll develop it — only that you may be more susceptible than someone without these risk factors:
- Your sex. Although both men and women can develop autoimmune hepatitis, the disease is far more common in women.
- Age. Type 1 autoimmune hepatitis can occur in older adults, but it's most common in women between the ages of 15 and 40. Type 2 primarily affects young girls.
- A history of certain viral infections. Autoimmune hepatitis may develop after a viral infection, especially hepatitis A or B, measles, or infection with the Epstein-Barr virus.
- Use of certain medications. The high blood pressure drug methyldopa, the anti-inflammatory diclofenac, the antibiotics minocycline and nitrofurantoin, and perhaps atorvastatin (Lipitor) may trigger autoimmune hepatitis in some people.
- Heredity. Certain genetic defects increase the risk of autoimmune hepatitis.
