Effects of antiviral treatment and drug cessation on postpartum hepatitis

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Created On: 27/12/2022

The purpose of this study was to see how antiviral therapy and medication withdrawal affected the occurrence of hepatitis B post-delivery in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) virus-infected pregnant women who underwent Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate (TDF) intervention.

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Key take away

In pregnant women infected with chronic hepatitis B virus, the postpartum hepatitis incidence was not affected after withdrawal of antiviral drug immediately or at six weeks post-delivery.

Background

Method

Pregnant CHB women who met the requirements for enrollment were given TDF at 32 weeks gestation. Immediately after birth or six weeks later, the medication was withdrawn. The clinical biochemical parameters and HBV indicators were tracked during gestation and 24 weeks following birth.

Result

Overall, 264 women completed the observation, incorporating 96 participants in the control group who were not given any treatment. Among the 168 treated patients, 131 cases ceased taking the medicine as soon as the baby was born, whereas 37 cases delayed the drug withdrawal six weeks after the baby was born. There was no statistically significant difference (χ2 = 0.607) in the incidence of postpartum hepatitis in the control group, rapid drug withdrawal group, and delayed drug withdrawal group, as shown in Table 1:

There was no evidence that any factor contributed to the prevalence of postpartum hepatitis. Within 12 weeks post-delivery, 96.3% of postpartum hepatitis in the control group and 92.3% of postpartum hepatitis in the immediate drug withdrawal group occurred. Postpartum hepatitis was more common in the delayed drug withdrawal group, occurring in 77.7% of cases within 12 weeks after birth.

Conclusion

The incidence of postpartum hepatitis in CHB women was unaffected after withdrawal of TDF immediately after delivery or 6 weeks post-delivery. However, delaying drug withdrawal could postpone the onset of the disease.