The association of vitamin D with hepatitis B virus replication: Bystander rather than offender.

Background/purpose: Low vitamin D is frequent in hepatitis B virus (HBV)-infected patients and several studies show an inverse association of serum vitamin D level with HBV viral load. However, the causal relationship remains unclear.

Methods: HBV carriers receiving regular 6-month surveillance without current antiviral treatment or cirrhosis were invited to participate into this trial.

Response to hepatitis B vaccination is co-determined by HLA-DPA1 and -DPB1.

Background And Aims: No report explored the combined effects of HLA-DPA1 and -DPB1 with long-term response to hepatitis B (HB) vaccination (HBVac). The specific aims of the study were to assess the combined effects and relative contributions of DPA1 and DPB1 genes.

Methods: The cases were 152 adolescents who had undetectable (<1.

Decreased neonatal hepatitis B virus (HBV) viremia by maternal tenofovir treatment predicts reduced chronic HBV infection in children born to highly viremic mothers.

Background: Maternal anti-viral treatment prevents mother-to-infant transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV), but the role of neonatal viremia on subsequent HBV infection is not clear.

Aims: To investigate the effect of maternal anti-viral treatment on neonatal serum HBV DNA and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) in infants born to highly viremic mothers and the roles of neonatal markers in predicting chronic HBV infection in children.

Methods: Serum HBV DNA and HBsAg were tested in children.

Cirrhosis has no impact on therapeutic responses of entecavir for chronic hepatitis B.

Objective: As the efficacy of a direct antiviral agent is reduced in cirrhotic chronic hepatitis C patients, prolonged duration of treatment or addition of ribavirin is recommended to improve the rates of sustained virological response. However, the impact of cirrhosis on the efficacy of antiviral treatment for chronic hepatitis B (CHB) remained unclear.

Patients And Methods: This retrospective cohort study screened entecavir (ETV)-treated CHB patients in Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital from January 2007 till October 2014.

Association of Rheumatoid Arthritis and Hepatitis B Infection: A Nationwide Nested Case-Control Study From 1999 to 2009 in Taiwan.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a disorder with altered immunologic function and increased risks of infection, while the association between HBV and RA remains largely unknown.To determine the prevalence and risk of HBV infection in patients with RA, 2 cohort datasets were sourced from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database to capture National Health Insurance claims data between 1999 and 2009. One set was a specially requested RA subject's dataset extracted from the whole 23 million beneficiaries, and a total of 38,969 aged ≧18 years RA subjects were identified (RA cohort).

Assessing the Durability of Entecavir-Treated Hepatitis B Using Quantitative HBsAg.

Objectives: This study aims to assess whether quantitative HBsAg can predict durability of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients stopping entecavir (ETV) treatment.

Methods: We conducted a multicenter study on non-cirrhotic CHB patients who discontinued ETV treatment. The primary end points were clinical relapse and sustained viral response (SVR), which was defined as undetectable serum hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA levels (<6 IU/ml) at 12 months off-therapy.

Fibrosis index based on four factors better predicts advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis than aspartate aminotransferase/platelet ratio index in chronic hepatitis C patients.

Background/purpose: Liver biopsy is the gold standard to determine the severity of hepatic fibrosis despite its risk and invasiveness. The aspartate aminotransferase/platelet ratio index (APRI) could noninvasively predict the severity of hepatic fibrosis in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients. Whether fibrosis index based on four factors (FIB-4) could better predict the severity of hepatic fibrosis than APRI in CHC patients remains inconclusive.

Different risk factors between reflux symptoms and mucosal injury in gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is diagnosed based on typical symptoms in clinical practice. It can be divided into two groups using endoscopy: erosive and nonerosive reflux disease (NERD). This study aims to determine the risk factors of reflux symptoms and mucosal injury.

Systematic Review: Impact of Interferon-based Therapy on HCV-related Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the leading cause of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and several antiviral agents are available for the treatment of chronic HCV infection. However, the impact of antiviral therapy on the long-term outcomes of HCV-related HCC patients remains inconclusive. We aimed to examine the impact of antiviral therapy on the long-term outcomes of HCV-related HCC patients.

Efficacy of maternal tenofovir disoproxil fumarate in interrupting mother-to-infant transmission of hepatitis B virus.

Unlabelled: The efficacy and safety of maternal tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) in reducing mother-to-infant hepatitis B virus (HBV) transmissions is not clearly understood. We conducted a prospective, multicenter trial and enrolled 118 hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)- and hepatitis B e antigen-positive pregnant women with HBV DNA ≥7.5 log10 IU/mL.

Adipocytokines and liver fibrosis stages in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection.

Background: Adipocytokines play an important role in lipid metabolism and liver disease progression. However, the interactions between hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and adipocytokines remain largely unknown.

Aims: To investigate the association of HBV infection with adipocytokines in HBV-infected and noninfected subjects.

SNP rs7770370 in HLA-DPB1 loci as a major genetic determinant of response to booster hepatitis B vaccination: results of a genome-wide association study.

Background And Aim: Hepatitis B (HB) vaccination is highly effective in reducing the risk of hepatitis B virus infection. However, breakthrough and chronic hepatitis B virus infections in vaccinated subjects raised concern about its long-term efficacy. The specific aim of the study was to explore the host genetic determinants of long-term immunological memory against HB vaccination.

A pilot study of add-on oral hypoglycemic agents in treatment-naïve genotype-1 chronic hepatitis C patients receiving peginterferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin.

Background/purpose: Insulin resistance (IR) affects sustained virological response (SVR) to peginterferon alfa plus ribavirin (PR) in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC). Whether add-on oral hypoglycemic agents (OHAs) to PR improve SVR remains unclear; therefore, we conducted a prospective, randomized pilot trial on 23 consecutive patients with genotype 1 CHC and IR in Taiwan.

Methods: Patients were randomized to receive acarbose (Arm A; n = 7) or metformin (Arm B; n = 6) or pioglitazone (Arm C; n = 5) in addition to peginterferon alfa-2b (1.

Factors affecting the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography in assessing the severity of hepatic steatosis.

Background/purpose: Ultrasonography has long been recognized as a useful tool for detecting hepatic steatosis in clinical practice. However, whether it can assess the severity of hepatic steatosis and which factors affect its diagnostic accuracy remain unclear.

Methods: A total of 171 patients with various causes of hepatitis undergoing liver biopsies were retrospectively reviewed.

HBV-DNA level at 6 months of entecavir treatment predicts HBeAg loss in HBeAg-positive chronic hepatitis B patients.

Background/purpose: To evaluate whether on-treatment HBV-DNA level could predict the treatment response to entecavir in hepatitis B e antigen (HBe)-positive chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients.

Methods: A total of 68 treatment-naïve HBeAg-positive patients (75% male, mean age at 46.6 ± 11.

Baseline hepatitis B surface antigen quantitation can predict virologic response in entecavir-treated chronic hepatitis B patients.

Background/purpose: Several anti-viral drugs are approved for the treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. However, whether quantitative hepatitis B surface antigen (qHBsAg) can predict the therapeutic response during long-term entecavir treatment remains unclear.

Methods: Fifty-five chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients who received entecavir for more than 2 years were enrolled.

Interferon-based therapy decreases risks of hepatocellular carcinoma and complications of cirrhosis in chronic hepatitis C patients.

Background: Interferon-based therapy (IBT) has been the standard of care for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. However, conflicting results exist regarding the effects of IBT on risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and cirrhosis-associated complications, and most included highly selected patients.

Methods: This 8-year cohort study was based on the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2000 (LHID 2000) consisting of 1,000,000 beneficiaries randomly selected from all Taiwan National Health Insurance enrollees in 2000 (>23.

Prevalence and determinants of gastroesophageal reflux symptoms in adolescents.

Background And Aims: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is common in adults, and there are increasing secular trends in adult GERD morbidity in many countries. However, population-based study on adolescent GERD was very limited. The specific aims of the study were to explore the prevalence and determinant of GERD symptoms in adolescents.

Responses to booster hepatitis B vaccination are significantly correlated with genotypes of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DPB1 in neonatally vaccinated adolescents.

Genome-wide association studies have identified single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) near the human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DP loci that were significantly correlated with outcomes of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. We performed a case-control study nested in a well-characterized cohort of booster recipients to assess whether genetic variants of HLA-DPB1 are also associated with response to hepatitis B (HB) vaccination. The cases and controls were 171 and 510 booster recipients whose post-booster titers of antibodies against HBV surface antigen (anti-HBs) were undetectable and detectable, respectively.

Viral load and alanine aminotransferase correlate with serologic response in chronic hepatitis B patients treated with entecavir.

Background And Aim: Although entecavir has been shown to have good efficacy and low resistance for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB), factors associated with a favorable response remain unknown.

Methods: This was a retrospective, multicenter study of 248 treatment-naïve hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive patients (69.4% male; median age, 39.

Chronic hepatitis B infection in adolescents who received primary infantile vaccination.

Unlabelled: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a global health issue. Universal infantile hepatitis B (HB) vaccination is very efficacious. However, HBV infections among those immunized subjects have been reported.

Severity of fatty liver on ultrasound correlates with metabolic and cardiovascular risk.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is associated with an increased risk of metabolic and cardiovascular diseases. Whether the severity of fatty liver on ultrasound correlates with metabolic or cardiovascular risk remains unclear. A total of 1000 people receiving health examinations were enrolled, and 126 were excluded due to the presence of HBsAg, anti-HCV, known hepatic disorders or alcohol use (>140 g/wk).

Male sex, hiatus hernia, and Helicobacter pylori infection associated with asymptomatic erosive esophagitis.

Background And Aims: Asymptomatic erosive esophagitis (AEE) is an easily forgotten subgroup of gastroesophageal reflux disease due to its lack of warning symptoms, despite having the risk of developing complications, such as bleeding, stricture, or even esophageal adenocarcinoma.

Methods: A total of 2843 potentially eligible patients were screened at the health management center of Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital. A total of 1001 patients responded to the survey and gave informed consent; 998 patients who completed the reflux disease diagnostic questionnaire were enrolled.