If you work on the front lines of medical care treating patients with hepatitis, you may not have time to review all the hepatitis research that enters the medical literature every month. Here’s a quick look at some notable news items and journal articles published over the past month, covering a variety of the major hepatitis viruses.
The introduction of universal mass vaccination against hepatitis A in countries with intermediate endemicity for HAV infection led to a considerable decrease in the incidence of HAV in vaccinated and in nonvaccinated age groups alike.
©Zerbor/Thinkstock
Mortality was high among chronic hepatitis C patients, with and without cirrhosis, compared with the general population, a Danish cohort study found. Curing CHC was associated with reduced mortality among cirrhotic patients but remained higher than the general population.
A hepatitis C outbreak in a North Dakota skilled nursing facility highlights the importance of prompt reporting and investigation of incident HCV infection, and the need for adherence to basic infection control procedures by health care personnel.
A recent study identified a novel hepatitis B virus subgenotype D10 circulating in Ethiopia, underlining the high genetic variability of HBV strains in Africa.
A study in the Journal of Viral Hepatitis found that baseline hepatitis B core antibody predicts treatment response in chronic hepatitis B patients receiving long-term entecavir.
A novel quantitative microarray antibody capture assay was able to identify extremely high hepatitis delta virus prevalence amongst hepatitis B virus–infected Mongolians.
The albumin-bilirubin (ALBI) score was effective in predicting the long-term prognosis for patients with hepatitis B virus–related cirrhosis and was more accurate than Child-Pugh and Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) scores.
A study in Hepatology found that proanthocyanidin (PAC) and its analogs present a new class of anti–hepatitis B virus agents that directly target the preS1 region of the HBV large surface protein and could contribute to the development of a potent, well-tolerated, and broadly active inhibitor of HBV infection.
A hepatitis C virus core antigen (HCV-Ag) assay proved to be useful in monitoring treatment of HCV-infected patients with sustained viral response and in patients who experienced treatment failures, according to a study in Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease.
The introduction of a managed care network for patients infected with hepatitis C virus increased access to care and reduced all-cause mortality, according to a recent study.
A study in South Korea found that hepatitis B infection was associated with an increased incidence of thrombocytopenia in healthy adults without cirrhosis.
A proof-of-concept study demonstrated that peritransplant immunoprophylaxis combined with a single oral direct-acting antiviral in the immediate post-transplant period can prevent HCV recurrence.
A study in the Journal of Viral Hepatitis established the baseline mortality and hepatocellular carcinoma progression rates in decompensated cirrhosis patients against which the impact of new antiviral therapies could be measured.
Genetic distance-based network analyses can be used to identify characteristics associated with hepatitis C virus transmission, informing targeted prevention and treatment strategies, according to a recent study.
According to a new study, primary T-cell immunodeficiency is associated with a lower spontaneous clearance of hepatitis C virus, while female sex and coinfection with hepatitis B virus are associated with a higher spontaneous clearance.
A study in the Journal of Viral Hepatitis found that the induction of humoral and cellular immune response to hepatitis B virus vaccine can be upregulated by CpG oligonucleotides complexed with Dectin-1 ligand.
rpizzi@frontlinemedcom.com
On Twitter @richpizzi