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Abstract Details
Editorial: Prophylaxis in HBV-Infected Liver Transplant Patients: End of the HBIG Era?
Terrault N. Am J Gastroenterol. 2013 Jun;108(6):949-51. doi: 10.1038/ajg.2013.122.
Source
Division of Gastroenterology, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA.
Abstract
Improvements in the outcomes of patients transplanted for hepatitis B virus (HBV) have been substantial in the past two decades. With current therapies, the vast majority of transplant recipients are protected against recurrent and/or progressive liver disease. Effective prophylactic therapies include hepatitis B immune globulin (HBIG) plus nucleos(t)ide analogues (NAs) and NA therapy alone (without HBIG). Definitions of recurrence in the setting of prophylaxis are evolving-persistence or reappearance of hepatitis B surface antigen in serum remains a marker of reinfection, but is not necessarily a marker of progressive hepatitis. The level of HBV DNA at the time of transplant remains the most consistent factor predicting risk of recurrent HBV. An individualized, rather than a "one size fits all", approach to prophylaxis that is based on risk of reinfection and/or risk of progressive disease, if reinfected, is the optimal means of insuring optimal graft survival for HBV-infected patients