scholarly journals Development of an intervention system for linkage-to-care and follow-up for hepatitis B and C virus carriers

Author(s):  
Minami Kikuchi ◽  
Motoji Sawabe ◽  
Haruyo Aoyagi ◽  
Kosho Wakae ◽  
Koichi Watashi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 102-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Conor Grant ◽  
Sarah O'Connell ◽  
Darren Lillis ◽  
Anne Moriarty ◽  
Ian Fitzgerald ◽  
...  

BackgroundWe initiated an emergency department (ED) opt-out screening programme for HIV, hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) at our hospital in Dublin, Ireland. The objective of this study was to determine screening acceptance, yield and the impact on follow-up care.MethodsFrom July 2015 through June 2018, ED patients who underwent phlebotomy and could consent to testing were tested for HIV, HBV and HCV using an opt-out approach. We examined acceptance of screening, linkage to care, treatment and viral suppression using screening programme data and electronic health records. The duration of follow-up ranged from 1 to 36 months.ResultsOver the 36-month study period, there were 140 550 ED patient visits, of whom 88 854 (63.2%, 95% CI 63.0% to 63.5%) underwent phlebotomy and 54 817 (61.7%, 95% CI 61.4% to 62.0%) accepted screening for HIV, HBV and HCV, representing 41 535 individual patients. 2202 of these patients had a positive test result. Of these, 267 (12.1%, 95% CI 10.8% to 13.6%) were newly diagnosed with an infection and 1762 (80.0%, 95% CI 78.3% to 81.7%) had known diagnoses. There were 38 new HIV, 47 new HBV and 182 new HCV diagnoses. 81.5% (95% CI 74.9% to 87.0%) of known patients who were not linked were relinked to care after screening. Of the new diagnoses, 86.2% (95% CI 80.4 to 90.8%) were linked to care.ConclusionAlthough high proportions of patients had known diagnoses, our programme was able to identify many new infected patients and link them to care, as well as relink patients with known diagnoses who had been lost to follow-up.


2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. e000060 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vinh D Vu ◽  
Ailinh Do ◽  
Nghia H Nguyen ◽  
Lily H Kim ◽  
Huy N Trinh ◽  
...  

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Enis Uruci

Exposure prevention is the primary strategy to reduce the risk of occupational bloodborne pathogen infections in healthcare workers (HCW). HCWs should be made aware of the medicolegal and clinical relevance of reporting an exposure, and have ready access to expert consultants to receive appropriate counselling, treatment and follow-up. Vaccination against hepatitis B virus (HBV), and demonstration of immunisation before employment are strongly recommended. HCWs with postvaccinal anti-HBs levels, 1-2 months after vaccine completion, .or=10 mIU/mL are considered as responders. Responders are protected against HBV infection: booster doses of vaccine or periodic antibody concentration testing are not recommended. Alternative strategies to overcome non-response should be adopted. Isolated anti-HBc positive HCWs should be tested for anti-HBcIgM and HBV-DNA: if negative, anti-HBs response to vaccination can distinguish between infection (anti-HBs .or=50 mIU/ml 30 days after 1st vaccination: anamnestic response) and false positive results(anti-HBs .or=10 mUI/ml 30 days after 3rd vaccination: primary response); true positive subjects have resistance to re-infection. and do not need vaccination The management of an occupational exposure to HBV differs according to the susceptibility of the exposed HCW and the serostatus of the source. When indicated, post-exposure prophylaxis with HBV vaccine, hepatitis B immunoglobulin or both must be started as soon as possible (within 1-7 days). In the absence of prophylaxis against hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, follow-up management of HCV exposures depends on whether antiviral treatment during the acute phase is chosen. Test the HCW for HCV-Ab at baseline and after 6 months; up to 12 for HIV-HCV co-infected sources. If treatment is recommended, perform ALT (amino alanine transferase) activity at baseline and monthly for 4 months after exposure, and qualitative HCV-RNA when an increase is detected. Introduction Bloodborne pathogens such as hepatitis B (HBV) and C virus (HCV) represent an important hazard for healthcare workers (HCWs) (1). In the general population, HCV prevalence varies geographically from about 0.5% in northern countries to 2% in Mediterranean countries, with some 5 million chronic carriers estimated in Europe; while HBV prevalence ranges from 0.3% to 3%. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that each year in Europe 304 000 HCWs are exposed to at least one percutaneous injury with a sharp object contaminated with HBV, 149 000 are exposed to HCV and 22 000 to HIV. The probability of acquiring a bloodborne infection following an occupational exposure has been estimated to be on average.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tingyan Wang ◽  
David A. Smith ◽  
Cori Campbell ◽  
Jolynne Mokaya ◽  
Oliver Freeman ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Current clinical guidelines recommend treating chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in a minority of cases, but there are relatively scarce data on evolution or progression of liver inflammation and fibrosis in cases of chronic HBV (CHB) that do not meet treatment criteria. We aimed to assess the impact of TDF on liver disease, and the risk of renal impairment in treated CHB patients in comparison to untreated patients. Methods We studied a longitudinal ethnically diverse CHB cohort in the UK attending out-patient clinics between 2005 and 2018. We examined TDF treatment (vs. untreated) as the main exposure, with HBV DNA viral load (VL), ALT, elastography scores and eGFR as the main outcomes, using paired tests and mixed effects model for longitudinal measurements. Additionally, decline of eGFR during follow-up was quantified within individuals by thresholds based on clinical guidelines. Baseline was defined as treatment initiation for TDF group and the beginning of clinical follow-up for untreated group respectively. Results We included 206 adults (60 on TDF, 146 untreated), with a median ± IQR follow-up duration of 3.3 ± 2.8 years. The TDF group was significantly older (median age 39 vs. 35 years, p = 0.004) and more likely to be male (63% vs. 47%, p = 0.04) compared to the untreated group. Baseline difference between TDF and untreated groups reflected treatment eligibility criteria. As expected, VL and ALT declined significantly over time in TDF-treated patients. Elastography scores normalised during treatment in the TDF group reflecting regression of inflammation and/or fibrosis. However, 6/81 (7.4%) of untreated patients had a progression of fibrosis stage from F0-F1 to F2 or F3. There was no evidence of difference in rates or incidence of renal impairment during follow-up in the TDF vs. untreated group. Conclusions Risk of liver inflammation and fibrosis may be raised in untreated patients compared to those receiving TDF, and TDF may benefit a larger percentage of the CHB population.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Te-Sheng Chang ◽  
Yao-Hsu Yang ◽  
Wei-Ming Chen ◽  
Chien-Heng Shen ◽  
Shui-Yi Tung ◽  
...  

AbstractIt remains controversial whether entecavir (ETV) and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) is associated with different clinical outcomes for chronic hepatitis B (CHB). This study aimed to compare the long-term risk of ETV versus TDF on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) in CHB patients from a large multi-institutional database in Taiwan. From 2011 to 2018, a total of 21,222 CHB patients receiving ETV or TDF were screened for eligibility. Patients with coinfection, preexisting cancer and less than 6 months of follow-up were excluded. Finally, 7248 patients (5348 and 1900 in the ETV and TDF groups, respectively) were linked to the National Cancer Registry database for the development of HCC or ICC. Propensity score matching (PSM) (2:1) analysis was used to adjust for baseline differences. The HCC incidence between two groups was not different in the entire population (hazard ratio [HR] 0.82; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.66–1.02, p = 0.078) and in the PSM population (HR 0.83; 95% CI 0.65–1.06, p = 0.129). Among decompensated cirrhotic patients, a lower risk of HCC was observed in TDF group than in ETV group (HR 0.54; 95% CI 0.30–0.98, p = 0.043, PSM model). There were no differences between ETV and TDF groups in the ICC incidence (HR 1.84; 95% CI 0.54–6.29, p = 0.330 in the entire population and HR 1.04; 95% CI 0.31–3.52, p = 0.954 in the PSM population, respectively). In conclusion, treatment with ETV and TDF showed a comparable long-term risk of HCC and ICC in CHB patients.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chinyere Ukamaka Onubogu ◽  
Ebelechuku Francesca Ugochukwu

Abstract Background A large number of HIV-infected children continue to die despite reported scale-up of paediatric HIV services. Aim The trend in attrition among children enrolled in an anti-retroviral therapy (ART) programme was evaluated. Methods This was a retrospective review of children enrolled into NAUTH ART programme between 2003 and 2019. Results 1114 children < 15 years at enrolment were studied. The male: female ratio was 1:1 while median age at enrolment was 4.3 years. About two-thirds had WHO stage 3 or 4 disease at enrolment. The rate of loss to follow-up (LTFU) and death were 41.0 and 8.4%, respectively, with overall attrition incidence of 108/1000PY. Despite the downward trend, spikes occurred among those enrolled in 2008 to 2011 and in 2017. The trend in 6-, 12-, 24- and 36-months attrition varied similarly with overall rates being 20.4, 27.7, 34.3 and 37.3%, respectively. Among those on ART, > 50% of attrition was recorded within 6 months of care. Advanced WHO stage, young age, non-initiation on ART or period of enrolment (P <  0.001), and caregiver (p = 0.026) were associated with attrition in bivariate analysis. Apart from caregiver category, these factors remained significant in multivariate analysis. Most LTFU could not be reached on phone. Among those contacted, common reasons for being lost to follow-up were financial constraints, caregiver loss, claim to divine healing, family disharmony/child custody issues and relocation of family/child. Conclusion/recommendation Attrition rate was high and was mostly due to LTFU. Predictors of attrition were late presentation, young age, delay in ART initiation and financial constraints. Efforts should be intensified at early diagnosis, linkage to care and implementation of “test and treat” strategy. Innovative child centered approaches should be adopted to enable the HIV-infected children remain in care despite challenges which can truncate treatment.


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