Screening for hepatitis D and PEG-Interferon over Tenofovir enhance general hepatitis control efforts in Brazil.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis D virus (HDV), which requires the presence of hepatitis B virus (HBV), is a deadly yet neglected disease that rapidly leads to liver cancer and disease-induced mortality. This co-dependence creates complex transmission dynamics that make it difficult to predict the efficacy of interventions aimed at HBV and/or HDV control in endemic regions, such as certain municipalities of Brazil, where up to 65% of HBV-infected persons are co-infected. METHODOLOGY: We created a mathematical model that captures the joint transmission dynamics of HBV and HDV, incorporating mother-to-child, sexual and household transmission. With an aim to minimize the number of total infections and disease-induced mortality in 2027, we then determined optimal strategies for Brazil and its sub-regions under a constrained budget, which was dynamically allocated among HBV and HDV screening, HBV and HDV treatment, HBV newborn and adult vaccination, and awareness programs. Three treatment options were considered, namely: Tenofovir, PEGylated-Interferon, and nucleic acid polymers (NAP). RESULTS: The additional cost of HDV screening and the use of a more expensive PEGylated-Interferon are offset by not wasting resources on treating co-infected persons with Tenofovir. The introductory price of NAP treatment must be less than $16,000 per course to become competitive with Tenofovir and PEGylated-Interferon in Brazil. CONCLUSION: Additional screening for HDV is beneficial, even in a low HBV and HDV endemic regions of Brazil. We recommend PEGylated-Interferon, wherever possible, for both HBV and HDV. If PEGylated-Interferon is not available in abundance, PEGylated-Interferon for co-infections and 4-year Tenofovir treatment for mono-infections is recommended.

Roadmap to control HBV and HDV epidemics in China.

PURPOSE: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is endemic in China. Almost 10% of HBV infected individuals are also infected with hepatitis D virus (HDV) which has a 5-10 times higher mortality rate than HBV mono-infection. The aim of this manuscript is to devise strategies that can not only control HBV infections but also HDV infections in China under the current health care budget in an optimal manner. METHODS: Using a mathematical model, an annual budget of $10billion was optimally allocated among five interventions namely, testing and HBV adult vaccination, treatment for mono-infected and dually-infected individuals, second line treatment for HBV mono-infections, and awareness programs. RESULTS: We determine that the optimal strategy is to test and treat both infections as early as possible while applying awareness programs at full intensity. Under this strategy, an additional 19.8million HBV, 1.9million HDV infections and 0.25million lives will be saved over the next 10years at a cost-savings of $79billion than performing no intervention. Introduction of second line treatment does not add a significant economic burden yet prevents 1.4million new HBV infections and 15,000 new HDV infections. CONCLUSION: Test and treatment programs are highly efficient in reducing HBV and HDV prevalence in the population. Under the current health budget in China, not only test and treat programs but awareness programs and second line treatment can also be implemented that minimizes prevalence and mortality, and maximizes economic benefits.

Recognizing the impact of endemic hepatitis D virus on hepatitis B virus eradication.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis delta virus (HDV) in conjunction with hepatitis B virus (HBV) increases adult morbidity and mortality. A number of studies have performed cost-benefit analyses for HBV interventions, but they have ignored the impact of HDV on these outcomes. METHODS: Using a mathematical model of HBV-HDV epidemiology, we compare health benefits and cost outcomes of four interventions: testing with HBV adult vaccination (diagnosis), diagnosis with antiviral treatment for HBV infections (mono-infections), diagnosis with antiviral treatment for HBV-HDV infections (dual-infections), and awareness programs. The relationship between optimal levels and outcomes of each of these interventions and HDV prevalence in HBV infected individuals ranging from 0 to 50% is determined. RESULTS: Over a 50 year period under no intervention, HBV prevalence, per capita total cost and death toll increase by 2.25%, -$11 and 2.6-fold respectively in moderate HDV endemic regions compared to mono-infected regions; the corresponding values for high HDV endemic regions are 4.2%, -$21 and 3.9-fold. Optimal interventions can be strategized similarly in mono and dually endemic regions. Only implementation of all four interventions achieves a very low HBV prevalence of around 1.5% in a moderate HDV endemic region such as China, with 2.8 million fewer deaths compared to no intervention. Although the policy of implementation of all four interventions costs additional $382 billion compared to no intervention, it still remains cost-effective with an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $1400/QALY. Very high efficacy awareness programs achieve less prevalence with fewer deaths at a lower cost compared to treatment and/or vaccination programs. CONCLUSION: HDV substantially affects the performance of any HBV-related intervention. Its exclusion results in over-estimation of the effectiveness of HBV interventions.

Cost-Effectiveness of Peg-Interferon, Interferon and Oral Nucleoside Analogues in the Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis B and D Infections in China.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The cost-effectiveness of highly effective, but costly, peg-interferon (peg-IFN) treatment for chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infections in China is unknown. Endemic hepatitis D virus (HDV) may also modify the effectiveness of any HBV treatment option. The objective of this study is to determine the best antiviral treatment from a societal perspective in the Chinese population, which contains a mix of HBV and HDV infections. METHODS: A Markov model is developed to simulate the clinical course of CHB and chronic hepatitis D (CHD) individuals. For a hypothetical Chinese cohort of 10,000 individuals aged 30-60 years, cost-utility analysis is performed for therapies with: lamivudine, adefovir, telbivudine, entecavir, IFN and Peg-IFN. Costs and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) are discounted at 3 % annually. A one-way sensitivity analysis is also conducted. RESULTS: Lamivudine, adefovir, telbivudine, and entecavir are all cost-effective treatments compared to palliative care at an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of -$418, -$197, -$443 and -$317 per QALY, respectively (2015 US dollars). Peg-IFN yields a maximum 156,000 QALYs with an ICER of $1149 per QALY while IFN results in the highest cumulative mortality of 48 % along with the lowest QALY gained. Probabilistic sensitivity analyses confirm that only Peg-IFN and ETV are the only two cost-effective options at the current willingness-to-pay (WTP) of $12,000 in China. However, entecavir has a higher probability of being cost-effective than Peg-IFN at current WTP for all age groups. CONCLUSIONS: Peg-IFN generates maximum QALYs compared to lamivudine, adefovir, telbivudine and interferon, and presents itself as a cost-effective option at current WTP. Alternatively entecavir can be used in China, generating 10 % lower QALYs than Peg-IFN but costing less than palliative care.