Hepatitis B Virus

The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted unanimously, 15-0, on Wednesday to recommend hepatitis B vaccination for all adults aged 19 to 59 years.

The COVID-19 pandemic has further disrupted WHO’s global hepatitis elimination strategy, which aims to reduce new cases of chronic HBV and HCV infection by 90% and reduce deaths from the infections by 65% by 2030.

In May, WHO released a 112-page progress report that detailed gaps in the efforts to eliminate HIV, hepatitis and STIs by 2030.

WHO released the first-ever global guidance for countries seeking validated hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus elimination.

The CDC announced achievement in controlling the hepatitis B virus and detailed the next steps for continued progress among underperforming countries’ immunization programs impacted by COVID-19 in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

The fibrosis-4 index may be a useful screening method for hepatocellular carcinoma among patients with non-hepatitis B and non-hepatitis C virus, according to research published in BMC Gastroenterology.

The risk for aortic aneurysms among people living with HIV was increased fourfold compared with people without HIV, and HIV status was independently associated with aortic aneurysms, researchers reported.

Healio Gastroenterology presents the following reports on recent news in COVID-19.

Chronic hepatitis B virus, whether current or past, was not associated with increased incidence of acute liver injury or death among patients with COVID-19, according to research presented at the International Liver Congress.

Extending dosing of a novel GalNAc-small interfering RNA brought most patients’ surface antigen levels of hepatitis B virus under control, according to a presenter at the International Liver Congress.