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hepatitis B virus hepatitis
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Hepatitis B infection is a serious and common infectious disease of the liver caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV) (1)
- HBV is an enveloped DNA virus. The complete virus particle is known as the Dane particle and has characteristic serological markers
- it transmitted parenterally, or by intimate, usually sexual contact (1).
Hepatitis infection can be either:
- acute
- occurs in 1-4% of hospitalised patients with HBV, a figure which is increased by concomitant infection with hepatitis D virus
- usually a self-limiting disease marked by acute inflammation and hepatocellular necrosis
- case fatality rate is around 0.5–1%
- chronic
- defined as persistence of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) for six months or more
- chronic sequelae are attributed to deficiency in the host immune response rather than to the cytotoxicity of HBV
- encompasses a spectrum of disease (1)
Reference:
- (1) World Health Organization (WHO) 2015. Guidelines for the prevention, care and treatment of persons with chronic hepatitis B infection.
- (2) NICE (October 2017). Hepatitis B (chronic) Diagnosis and management of chronic hepatitis B in children, young people and adult
Last edited 06/2018 and last reviewed 07/2018
Links:
- epidemiology
- Dane particle
- risk groups
- transmission
- serology
- clinical features
- treatment of acute hepatitis
- treatment of chronic hepatitis B hepatitis
- prognosis
- prevention
- hepatitis B virus in neonates
- chronic hepatitis B virus hepatitis
- screening for hepatitis B in pregnancy
- assessment of hepatitis B and referral criteria from primary care
- phases of hepatitis B infection - relating HBe antigen, HBV DNA levels and antibody to HBe antigen
- host and viral risk factors associated with progression of chronic hepatitis B
- NICE guidance on management of chronic hepatitis B infection
- hepatitis B vaccination