摘要
Hepatitis B viral(HBV)reactivation in the immunosuppressed is a significant problem even in patients who have achieved serological clearance due to the persistence of HBV as cccDNA.HBV reactivation will continue to pose a significant healthcare burden given the high prevalence of HBV and increasing use of immunosuppressants.Screening of hepatitis B surface antigen,antibody to Hepatitis B core antigen antibody and HBV DNA levels should be done routinely in all patients planned for significant immunosuppressant use.We aimed to examine the factors affecting reactivation risk.This depended on HBV disease status,the underlying disease requiring immunosuppression,and the specific immunosuppressive regime.While antiviral prophylaxis can prevent reactivation,it increases cost and still has risk of delayed reactivation after stopping antivirals and close follow-up and on-demand treatment is a good alternative for patients at risk of reactivation.
Hepatitis B viral(HBV) reactivation in the immunosuppressed is a significant problem even in patients who have achieved serological clearance due to the persistence of HBV as cccDNA. HBV reactivation will continue to pose a significant healthcare burden given the high prevalence of HBV and increasing use of immunosuppressants. Screening of hepatitis B surface antigen, antibody to Hepatitis B core antigen antibody and HBV DNA levels should be done routinely in all patients planned for significant immunosuppressant use. We aimed to examine the factors affecting reactivation risk. This depended on HBV disease status, the underlying disease requiring immunosuppression, and the specific immunosuppressive regime. While antiviral prophylaxis can prevent reactivation, it increases cost and still has risk of delayed reactivation after stopping antivirals and close follow-up and on-demand treatment is a good alternative for patients at risk of reactivation.
