Hepatitis B reactivation risk and physician awareness in rheumatological patients receiving anti-tumor necrosis factor-α treatment.
Rev Assoc Med Bras (1992)
; 70(7): e20240091, 2024.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39045935
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
We aimed to evaluate the risk of hepatitis B virus reactivation in rheumatic patients using anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha drugs and the awareness of physicians about hepatitis B virus reactivation.METHODS:
Demographic characteristics, pre- and post-treatment hepatitis markers, and laboratory parameters of patients receiving anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha therapy in our rheumatology clinic were retrospectively examined.RESULTS:
A total of 448 patients, 240 (53.6%) female and 208 (46.4%) male, were evaluated. Their mean age was 48.02±14.64 years. While HBsAg was examined in 443 (98.9%) patients before treatment, 7 (1.6%) patients were found to be HBsAg positive. While anti-HBc IgG was examined in 405 (90.4%) patients, it was positive in 69 (17%) patients. HBs Ag (total 446-99.6%) test was performed in three patients who were not tested for HBsAg before the treatment, and anti-HBc total (431-96.2% total) test was performed in 26 patients who were not tested for anti-HBc total. All HBsAg positive patients and 17 (24.6%) of those with previous hepatitis B received antiviral treatment. While the median follow-up period of the patients was 24 (6-60) months, no patient developed hepatitis B virus reactivation.CONCLUSION:
The screening rates and awareness of physicians providing anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha therapy for hepatitis B virus infection were found to be higher compared to similar studies. Hepatitis B virus reactivation did not develop in any patient. Since the risk of hepatitis B virus reactivation is low, especially in patients with previous hepatitis B, it would be more appropriate to follow up the patients without giving antiviral prophylaxis.
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Virus Activation
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Hepatitis B virus
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Rheumatic Diseases
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Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
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Hepatitis B
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Hepatitis B Surface Antigens
Limits:
Adult
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Aged
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Female
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Humans
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Male
/
Middle aged
Language:
En
Journal:
Rev Assoc Med Bras (1992)
Year:
2024
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Turquía