ACIP review of the hepatitis B birth dose vaccination remains a grave concern - Please read more here.

Site Search

You searched for "hepatitis D"

  • #justB Storyteller David’s Advocacy Journey

                        David is living with hepatitis B, and he spoke about empathy and mental health as a panelist at the World Hepatitis Summit (WHS) 2024 Another World Hepatitis Summit (WHS) has come and gone, this time in Lisbon, Portugal. I previously attended the 2022 summit in Geneva and spoke during the Youth Can't-Wait and Closing Sessions. I would like to give my thanks to the wonderful people at the World Hepatitis Alliance, for allowing me to travel and speak at this year's summit as well.   I spoke during a newly created session called Hepatitis and Mental Health. During this session, a video I made in collaboration with the WHA last year, was played before I spoke. It is part of the WHA "I can't wait" series of videos, which showcase patient advocates and their journeys with patient advocacy and why they can't wait for a world without hepatitis. I, the dedicated and powerful Shabana Begum of the UK, and the courageous and vocal Shaibu Issa of Tanzania are the first to be featured in these videos.   I can't wait... these words evoke dire urgency. During this summit, I felt and heard the urgency from many of the speakers, advocates, and attendees. From the opening session, it was emphasized that the world DOES have the tools and resources but DOES NOT have the required amount of political and social will to eliminate viral hepatitis by 2030. The need for person-centered and culturally appropriate approaches as being critically important was also highlighted.   These declarations capture the moment the viral hepatitis community is currently in. Time is slipping away by the day and the people who suffer from viral hepatitis, hepatitis B and D included, cannot continue to wait in silence as they have been. Deaths from hepatitis B are still alarmingly high each year. These statistics highlight a problem of stigma and discrimination that presents differently depending on where you are located or who you are

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/justb-storyteller-davids-advocacy-journey/
  • Should I Take Milk Thistle?

          Silymarin or “milk thistle”, an herb and extract of milk thistle seeds, is a supplement commonly taken by people living with hepatitis across the world, yet its proven benefits remain controversial. It is not a treatment for hepatitis B or D, nor has it been shown to have any effect against fighting these viruses. This herb is believed to have possible benefits on liver health due to its antioxidant and free radical fighting properties, although no studies have found a consistent positive effect on viral load or fibrosis scores. U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has published a directory of what scientific research has discovered about common herbal supplements. Probably the most popular herbal supplement pitched as a liver remedy is milk thistle, and its extract silymarin. The NIH milk thistle report found, “Results from clinical trials of milk thistle for liver diseases have been conflicting or haven’t been clinically meaningful. Some of the studies have been of poor quality, too.” The overall finding is that scientific research has not found any benefit of taking milk thistle. Silymarin is often taken by patients or suggested by their health care provider during or after interferon treatment ends, presumably with the hope of a protective or anti-inflammatory effect on the liver. But a 2013 study on hepatitis C patients unsuccessfully treated with interferon (the standard treatment for hepatitis B and D coinfection) found no significant difference in silymarin’s ability to lower ALT scores over placebo (a pill with no active drug ingredients)1. Another 2013 metanalysis reviewed 8 studies which tested silymarin against a placebo and looked for measurable levels of improvement in ALT scores, of which the results were mixed and inconsistent1. However, studies have found improvements in patients’ self-reported quality of life after taking silymarin 2 – perhaps due to decreased stress or self-perceived control over their

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/milk-thistle/
  • U.S. Screening Recommendations

    The U.S. Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends screening all adults 18 and older for hepatitis B at least once in a lifetime. This recommendation complements the CDC's guidance to have all adults ages 19-59 vaccinated against hepatitis B.  Read the updated screening recommendations here: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).  Call to Action: Eliminating Hepatitis B Virus Through Universal Screening and Vaccination for Adults Ages 19-59: The Hepatitis B Screening & Vaccine Advisory Council has developed guidance on how healthcare providers in various settings can begin implementing universal hepatitis B screening and vaccination. Read more here. Type of screening The new recommendation calls for all adults to be screening using the hepatitis B triple panel (hepatitis B surface antigen, hep B surface antibody and hep B core antibody). The triple panel is preferred because it provides a comprehensive view of a person’s hepatitis B status and alerts the provider as to the necessary next steps, including vaccination for susceptible individuals or linkage to care for those infected. The need for more hepatitis B screening In the U.S., up to 2.4 million people are chronically infected, yet only 25% of those individuals know they are infected. Without diagnosis and appropriate care and treatment, people with chronic hepatitis B are at significantly increased risk of cirrhosis and liver cancer. Risk-based testing alone has failed to identify most people living with chronic hepatitis B and is inefficient for providers to implement. Universal hepatitis B screening of adults is cost-effective, and is a critical step in preventing liver disease, liver cancer, and death. What can you do?  Ask your doctor to get screened for hepatitis B today. Spread the word to your friends and family that this simple blood test could save their life from deadly liver cancer.  For Providers The new hepatitis B screening guidelines update and expand previous guidelines for HBV screening and testing by recommending screening for all U.S. adults and expanding continual periodic risk-based testing to include more groups, activities, exposures, and conditions. Read the full recommendation here.  Partners from CDC, University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine and Stanford University School of Medicine have published a JAMA Viewpoint summarizing the role of universal screening in hepatitis B elimination.  

    https://www.hepb.org/prevention-and-diagnosis/u-s-screening-recommendations/
  • If I don’t need to take medicine for my hepatitis B at this time, what must I do to support my liver?

    If you have been carefully evaluated by a knowledgeable doctor and learned you do not need treatment, it is important to continue with regular monitoring of your hepatitis B infection and the health of your liver every 6 months or at least annually because things can change with time - even if you have been in an inactive phase of the virus. In general, you want to be sure you are living a healthy lifestyle. Avoid alcohol, cigarettes, and eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, and get regular exercise. Eat a diet full of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, plant-based proteins, fish and lean meats. Avoid processed foods and limit sugary drinks (sodas and fruit juices) and foods with added sugar. Limit red and fatty cuts of meat and limit foods deep fried in unhealthy oils. Also be very careful with medications or herbal remedies and supplements. Some supplements and herbs can do more harm than good. Here is more information on how to maintain a healthy liver. Find more healthy liver tips on this episode of our B Heppy podcast with Dr. Jennifer Lai.  You also want to be sure close household contacts, family members, and sexual partners are tested. We are very lucky that hepatitis B is a vaccine preventable disease. Please visit our webpage to learn more about hepatitis B transmission, and how to protect your loved ones. Find more Frequently Asked Questions here.  Page updated 05/09/2022

    https://www.hepb.org/what-is-hepatitis-b/faqs/if-i-dont-need-to-take-medicine-for-my-hepatitis-b-at-this-time-what-must-i-do-to-support-my-liver/
  • Diagnosed with Chronic Hepatitis B? What do the HBe Blood Tests Mean?

    Your liver specialist has informed you that you have a chronic hepatitis B infection, and that he wants to run additional blood work so he can learn more about your HBV. Some of this blood work may need to be repeated over a period of time, but over the next 6 months or so, your doctor will determine whether or not you are a good candidate for treatment.  Regardless, he will definitely want to continue monitoring. Remember, treatment is important, but rarely an emergency, so be patient. Now you need additional lab work to determine your HBe status, which will tell you whether or not you are HBeAg and HBeAb (anti-HBe) negative or positive. This reveals a great deal about your HBV such as whether or not the virus is replicating, and how infectious you are to others. At this point, it is helpful to have a little background on antigens and antibodies.  An antigen is a foreign substance in your body that evokes an immune response. This may include viruses, bacteria or other environmental agents such as pollen or a chemical. In this case, it is the HBV e antigen. Your previous hepatitis B panel tested for the surface antigen, or HBsAg. Antibodies are produced as a result of an immune system response to antigens. These antigen/antibody pairings are unique. An antibody response can be generated as a result of an immune response to an actual infection, or as a result of vaccination.  An uninfected person vaccinated against hepatitis B will generate an immune response, or surface antibody (HBsAb, or anti-HBs) to the HBV vaccine. The hepatitis e antigen, or HBeAg, is a marker of an actively replicating HBV virus infection. Those with a positive HBeAg have active replication in their liver cells, more of the virus circulating in their blood, and as a result, they are more infectious, with a higher likelihood of transmitting HBV to others.  Most often, when a person is HBeAg positive, they tend to be HBeAb negative and vice-versa. This active, replicating phase may go on for

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/diagnosed-with-chronic-hepatitis-b-what-do-the-hbe-blood-tests-mean/
  • Narrowing your Search Further

    You will see filters that will help you narrow your search on the left side of the page. Filters include “eligibility criteria” (age, gender, etc.), “study type.”, “Study Results”, Study Phase” and “Study Funder”. Across the top are additional search options: “By Topic, “On Map”, and “Search Details”. These additional filtering options narrow your search further, though you will find fewer search results, or possibly no available trials if you are too specific. By Topic Topics help to narrow your search by the specifics of your individual health condition. Available topics include: “Conditions,” “Rare Diseases,” “Drug Interventions,” “Dietary Supplements,” and “Sponsor/Collaborators.” “Conditions” is the default when you select “By Topic”. If you have hepatitis B and fibrosis, you can use the “fibrosis” filter to narrow your search. Click on “Drug Interventions” and page through listings to find clinical trials specific to HBV and the selected drug, such as entecavir, tenofovir or others. Click on “Dietary Supplements” and select options such as milk thistle, vitamin D or others to find trials pertaining to hepatitis B and the selected supplement.   The 'By Topic' tab will bring up a list of diseases to select. Remember, at any point you can select 'Modify Search' or 'Start Over' to alter your search. On Map You can narrow your search by world region or by state. Click on the third tab and you will find a map of the region you would like to see. It is interesting to see the location of all hepatitis B clinical trials. You can do so by initially inputting ‘hepatitis B’ and not selecting a country.  Search Details Scroll down for a list of search terms you can use to refine your search. For example, if you start with ‘hepatitis B’ with no location selected, you’ll see various HBV related terms, drugs, vaccines and more, which you can select for a refined list.  The 'Search Details' tab will open up this screen. This is a brief guide on locating a clinical trial for hepatitis B and may not address all your specific concerns. You may consider asking your doctor for more information about clinical trials and what best fits the needs of your condition. For additional guidance on locating on a clinical trial, visit the Locating Clinical Trials page the ClinicalTrials.gov website. 

    https://www.hepb.org/treatment-and-management/clinical-trials/locating-clinical-trials-2/
  • Does Your Sex Life Interfere With Organ Donation? A Hepatitis B Perspective

    Giving or receiving the gift of life through organ donation is truly a gift. This week’s story - "CDC’s proposed guidelines for transplants say two sex partners is too many for top-notch organ donors " may well jeopardize the availability of this precious gift to those in need. For those living with HBV, this dilemma is especially disheartening.  With organ donation highly unlikely due to their HBV status, those living with HBV also face the possibility of requiring a liver transplant due to end-stage liver disease or HCC. Organs for donation don’t come easily.  These proposed guidelines are limiting.  The question is, are these guidelines even realistic?  Dr. Harry Dorn-Arias, a transplant surgeon at the Univeristy of Virginia told MSNBC, said it best: “With the new guidelines, every college student in America will be high-risk”. Perfectly healthy, young candidates may choose to waive their decision to donate their organs because the guidelines seem so… judgmental. They might not even consider the act of donation. And who will be out there to ensure that the now smaller subset of potential donors isn’t lying, and who will update the information annually? Will the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) be quizzing you on your sexual activities when you choose one way or the other to check the organ donor box for your license? If you’re sixteen and standing there with your mom at the DMV, are you going to take a stand and not be an organ donor because you have multiple sex partners, and mom doesn’t even know you’re having sex?  (Just went through the whole DMV process, so it’s fresh in my mind).  What if you are completely monogamous, but your partner is not? Do you have high-risk organs due to association?  And what if you are considering a life-saving, living related donation for your wife, but you're afraid to tell her you've had multiple sexual partners for the last 10 years of the marriage? If you've been lying the last 10 years, why

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/does-your-sex-life-interfere-with-organ-donation-a-hepatitis-b-perspective/
  • B A Hero...Free Hepatitis B Sreening Day!

    Hep B Free Philadelphia is putting on a city-wide “B A Hero” free hepatitis B screening day on Saturday October 22, 2011. Free hepatitis B screenings will be available at the following hospital sites: Jefferson - Focusing on the Chinese community and will be a bi-lingual event Einstein - Focusing on the Cambodian community and others, and will be a bilingual event Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) - Focusing on the African community and the screening of entire families, including kids.  Event is bi-lingual (French/Haitian Creole) Drexel - Focusing on the Chinese and Korean communities.  Event will likely be tri-lingual. Please join us. B sure and B tested All screening and education is Free!  Fun give-aways for everyone screened!  All test results are private and will be mailed to the individual.  

    http://www.hepb.org/blog/b-a-hero-free-hepatitis-b-sreening-day/
  • Treatment After Pregnancy

    People who have hepatitis B should be closely monitored for 6 months after delivery whether they have been prescribed antivirals are not. This will ensure there are no dangerous elevations in SGPT (ALT flares). For most people whose follow up testing shows no signs of active disease or cirrhosis (extensive liver disease), your physician will recommend regular monitoring with a liver specialist (hepatologist) or doctor with experience managing the care of people with hepatitis B.  In all cases, it is very important that your obstetrician (or provider who will be delivering your baby), and your newborn’s pediatrician, are aware of your hepatitis B status to ensure that your newborn receives the proper vaccines at birth to prevent a lifelong hepatitis B infection, and that you receive appropriate follow up care.  Please refer to Adults Living with Hepatitis B and Blood Tests and Diagnosis sections for additional information on living with and managing chronic hepatitis B. Page updated September 2020

    https://www.hepb.org/treatment-and-management/pregnancy-and-hbv/treatment-after-pregnancy/
  • High School Science Enrichment Program

    The Hepatitis B Foundation (HBF) offers a two-week High School Science Enrichment Program for talented high school students interested in learning about research, biotechnology and public health in the context of hepatitis B and liver cancer. Students gain a unique “hands-on” experience at the HBF’s Pennsylvania Biotechnology Center in state-of-the-art research labs under the guidance of senior scientists. In addition to lab research, students learn public health issues in research, enjoy guest lectures, and attend professional seminars. They hear about the outreach and advocacy initiatives of the HBF from our dedicated public health professionals to gain an awareness of the global problem of hepatitis B and an appreciation of the importance of research in advancing our mission. The goals of the High School Science Enrichment Program are: Provide “hands-on” lab experience that is supervised by professional scientists Learn about the global problem of hepatitis B, which has infected 2 billion people worldwide Understand the role of research and public health in addressing the problem of diseases within the context of hepatitis B Learn how science can be applied in different career paths, including research and medicine Review the mission and good work of the Hepatitis B Foundation At the conclusion of the program, students submit a summary of their experience and provide a presentation of their accomplishments at a forum attended by their peers, mentors, HBF faculty and invited guests.  Students from select area schools are chosen by their individual district personnel. The program is partially funded by the Pennsylvania Education Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) Program. For information about the program, contact interns@hepb.org For information about supporting the program, contact Jean Holmes, jean.holmes@hepb.org.

    https://www.hepb.org/research-and-programs/education-and-training/high-school-program/