Clinical, demographic, and epidemiologic characteristics of hepatitis B virus-infected patients at a tertiary public hospital in Presidente Prudente, State of São Paulo, Brazil

Abstract: INTRODUCTION: Few studies have addressed the primary characteristics of patients infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV) in the general population, especially those living in small- and medium-sized cities in Brazil. We aimed to determine the clinical, demographic, and epidemiologic characte...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical
Main Authors: Luiz Euribel Prestes-Carneiro, Jessyka Thaiza Menezes Vieira, Luiza Bellintani Isaac, Alexandre Martins Portelinha Filho
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical (SBMT) 2016
Subjects:
Hepatitis B vírus
Epidemiology
Risk factors
Antiviral treatment
Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine
RC955-962
Arctic
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1590/0037-8682-0315-2015
https://doaj.org/article/1f942bcd7f6f474f97f2679d88f7b93b
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Summary:Abstract: INTRODUCTION: Few studies have addressed the primary characteristics of patients infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV) in the general population, especially those living in small- and medium-sized cities in Brazil. We aimed to determine the clinical, demographic, and epidemiologic characteristics of patients diagnosed with HBV who were followed up at an infectious diseases clinic of a public hospital in State of São Paulo, Brazil. METHODS: Medical records of patients aged >18 years and diagnosed with HBV infection between January 2000 and December 2013 were reviewed. RESULTS: Seventy-five patients were enrolled with male-female main infection-associated risk factors; 9 (12%) were co-infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), 5 (6.7%) with hepatitis C virus (HCV), and 3 (4%) were co-infected with both HIV and HCV. Antiviral HBV therapy was applied in 21 (28%) patients and tenofovir monotherapy was the most prescribed medication. After approximately 2 years of antiviral treatment, the HBV-DNA viral load was undetectable in 12 (92.3%) patients and lower levels of alanine aminotransferase were found in these patients. CONCLUSIONS: Over a 13-year interval, very few individuals infected with HBV were identified, highlighting the barriers for caring for patients with HBV in developing countries. New measures need to be implemented to complement curative practices.

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