The Use of Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate in the Management of eAg-Negative Chronic Hepatitis B Infection

Background/Objectives: Currently, there are insufficient data to recommend the treatment of patients with hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-negative chronic infection who have normal ALT and low HBV DNA, since the prognosis is generally regarded as favorable. The aim of this pilot study was to determine whether the use of tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) 300 mg/day for 3 years was able to achieve functional cure (HBsAg loss) and HBsAg seroconversion in HBeAb-positive individuals. Methods: Fifty patients not on antiviral therapy (40% men, mean age 48.9 ± 10.9 years, 84% Asians) with minimal fibrosis were enrolled. Results: TDF reduced HBV DNA significantly to undetectable levels after 6 months. Overall, 48.3% of inactive carriers (baseline HBV DNA < 2000 IU/mL) remained HBV DNA negative 6 months after treatment withdrawal, which was significantly higher than the 5.6% in those who were not inactive carriers (baseline HBV DNA ≥ 2000 IU/mL) (p = 0.003). The HBsAg levels did not drop throughout the study period with no difference between inactive carriers versus those who were not. Five inactive carriers achieved functional cure, but none of these were amongst those who were not inactive carriers. No renal dysfunction or ALT flare on treatment withdrawal was observed. Conclusions: TDF could potentially be used to induce functional cure in patients who are inactive carriers with normal ALT, low HBV DNA and without advanced fibrosis.

The Prediction of In-Hospital Mortality in Decompensated Cirrhosis with Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure

Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is a condition in cirrhosis associated with organ failure (OF) and high short-term mortality. Both the European Association for the Study of the Liver-Chronic Liver Failure (EASL-CLIF) and North American Consortium for the Study of End-Stage Liver Disease (NACSELD) ACLF definitions have been shown to predict ACLF prognosis. The aim of this study was to compare the ability of the EASL-CLIF versus NACSELD systems over baseline clinical and laboratory parameters in the prediction of in-hospital mortality in admitted patients with decompensated cirrhosis. Five NACSELD centers prospectively collected data to calculate EASL-CLIF and NACSELD-ACLF scores for admitted patients with cirrhosis who were followed for the development of OF, hospital course, and survival. Both the number of OFs and the ACLF grade or presence were used to determine the impact of NACSELD versus EASL-CLIF definitions of ACLF above baseline parameters on in-hospital mortality. A total of 1031 patients with decompensated cirrhosis (age, 57 ± 11 years; male, 66%; Child-Pugh-Turcotte score, 10 ± 2; Model for End-Stage Liver Disease [MELD] score, 20 ± 8) were enrolled. Renal failure prevalence (28% versus 9%, P < 0.001) was more common using the EASL-CLIF versus NACSELD definition, but the prevalence rates for brain, circulatory, and respiratory failures were similar. Baseline parameters including age, white cell count on admission, and MELD score reasonably predicted in-hospital mortality (area under the curve, 0.76). The addition of number of OFs according to either system did not improve the predictive power of the baseline parameters for in-hospital mortality, but the presence of NACSELD-ACLF did. However, neither system was better than baseline parameters in the prediction of 30- or 90-day outcomes. The presence of NACSELD-ACLF is equally effective as the EASL-CLIF ACLF grade, and better than baseline parameters in the prediction of in-hospital mortality in patients with cirrhosis, but not superior in the prediction of longer-term 30- or 90-day outcomes.