1,721,036 research outputs found
Combination of hepatitis B viral factors and advanced liver disease in HBeAg-negative patients: the more, the worse?
No full textViremia Profiles in Hepatitis B Virus Carrier Children with Spontaneous E Antigen Seroconversion: A Case of DÉJÀ Vu?
No full textTo Genotype or Not to Genotype: Toward an Optimal Tailoring of Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis B
No full textThe Clinical Implications of Hepatitis B Virus Genotype: Recent Advances
No full textOutcomes of chronic hepatitis B virus HBV infection are heterogeneous. Estimates of annual incidence of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma HCC are 2-10% and 1-3%, respectively. Several viral factors, including HBV genotype, viral load and specific viral mutations, have been associated with disease progression. Among these, HBV genotype is not only predictive of clinical outcomes but has also been associated with response to interferon treatment. Currently, at least 10 HBV genotypes and several subtypes have been identified; they have distinct geographic distribution. Acute infection with genotypes A and D results in higher rates of chronicity than genotypes B and C. Compared to genotype A and B cases, patients with genotypes C and D have lower rates of spontaneous hepatitis B e antigen HBeAg seroconversion; when this occurs, it tends to be delayed . HBV genotype C has a higher frequency of basal core promoter BCP A1762T/ G1764A mutation, pre-S deletion and is associated with higher viral load than genotype B. Similarly, genotype D has a higher prevalence of BCP A 1762T/ G1764A mutation than genotype A. These observations suggest important pathogenic differences between HBV genotypes. These may contribute to more severe liver disease, including cirrhosis and HCC with genotypes C and D HBV infection. In addition, genotype A and B patients have better responses to interferon-based therapy than genotypes C and D, but there are few consistent differences for direct HBV antivirals. In conclusion, genotyping of chronic HBV infections can help practicing physicians identify those at risk of disease progression and determine optimal anti-viral therapy
Hepatitis B Viral Load as a Prognostic Factor for Patients with Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma
No full textHBV infection is a global health problem that causes a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations, including inactive carrier status, chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Several host and viral factors have been identified that affect the long-term outcomes of HBV carriers. Recently, data from prospective cohort or case-control studies indicated that high baseline HBV viral loads in the immune clearance phase are associated with an increased risk of cirrhosis and HCC development, In addition, hepatitis flare due to HBV reactivation is a serious cause of liver-related morbidity and mortality in HBV carriers undergoing cytotoxic or immunosuppressive therapy. The results presented by Yeo et al. demonstrated that, for HBV-related unresectable HCC patients , a high HBV viral load prior to systemic chemotherapy served as an adverse factor for patient survival. These lines of evidence suggest that in addition to conventional clinical factors ( such as the extent of tumor , hepatic reserve, the performance status of patients and efficacy of treatment), baseline HBV viral load may play a prognostic role in HBV- related HCC. Prophylactic antiviral therapy might be effective in reducing hepatitis flare due to HBV reactivation and may improve survival for HBV- related unresectable HCC patients undergoing systemic chemotherapy
Recent Advances in the Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis B
No full textIntroduction: At present, two strategies exist for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB): i) standard or pegylated interferon alpha (IFN) with mainly immune modulatory effects; and ii) nucleos(t)ide analogues ( NA) with direct antiviral effects. The optimal treatment for an individual patient remains controversial. Areas covered: The treatment efficacy and prediction of response to antiviral agents for chronic hepatitis B are reviewed and discussed. Expert opinion: The rates of hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) loss or seroconversion are continuously increasing in CHB patients after stopping a finite course of IFN, whereas long-term NA therapy is usually required to improve the adverse outcomes of CHB. Lower baseline HBV DNA level is a strong predictor for both sustained viral suppression and HBeAg seroconversion in patients receiving IFN-based as well as NAs therapy. In addition, HBeAg- positive patients with genotype A or B infection have better responses to IFN-based therapy than those with genotypes C or D infection. Furthermore, on-treatment predictors such as declines of serum HBV DNA, HBsAg and HBeAg levels may be helpful in making decisions of subsequent therapy. Regarding the association of host genetic factors with responses to antiviral therapy, current evidence is limited
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
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