Risk of hepatitis B virus reactivation with direct-acting antivirals against hepatitis C virus: A cohort study from Egypt and meta-analysis of published data.

Background & Aims: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients treated with direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) became an issue. However, its frequency has been poorly estimated, because of the varying definitions used and evaluation of heterogeneous study populations, including those concurrently treated for HBV.

Methods: We prospectively followed HBV surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive Egyptians undergoing interferon-free DAAs, to estimate the risk of HBV reactivation and HBV-related hepatitis.