The summaries are free for public
use. The Chronic Liver Disease
Foundation will continue to add and
archive summaries of articles deemed
relevant to CLDF by the Board of
Trustees and its Advisors.
Abstract Details
Characteristics Associated with Monitoring and Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis B in a Large Cohort of Australian Adults
Dig Dis Sci. 2021 May 4. doi: 10.1007/s10620-021-07008-z. Online ahead of print.
Wen-Qiang He1, Gail V Matthews2, Bette Liu3
Author information
1School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, 2052, Australia. wen-qiang.he@unsw.edu.au.
2Kirby Institute, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
3School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, 2052, Australia.
Abstract
Background: Regular monitoring and treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) are known to reduce the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma. We sought to describe patterns of monitoring and treatment among adults diagnosed with CHB in Australia.
Methods: Population-based prospective cohort study of Australian adults aged 45 + years followed by record-linkage to hepatitis B notifications, monitoring and treatment. Proportions of those with CHB who: had viral load test; were dispensed antiviral treatment; and had ultrasound surveillance were estimated. The characteristics associated with viral load test and ultrasound surveillance were examined using logistic regression.
Results: A total of 576 adults with CHB were identified. From 2008 to 2015, 14.8% (85/576) had at least one viral load test recorded every 2 years and 19.1% (110/576) had at least one antiviral treatment recorded, 19.9% (58/292) had at least one ultrasound recorded every year among those eligible for ultrasound surveillance. A record of having at least one viral load test every 2 years was more likely among adults born in Asia compared to Australian-born (21.4% vs 8.6%), those notified in more recent years compared to earlier years, and those on antiviral treatment compared to not on treatment. Increasing proportions of cases had records of at least one viral load test over time (2008: 10.5%, 2015: 27.2%) and at least one antiviral treatment (2008: 3.0%, 2015: 18.5%).
Conclusions: In Australian adults, estimates of care interventions for CHB management have increased over time but still fall short of targets recommended in the National Hepatitis B Strategy.