title: Case report: dramatic response to lamivudine therapy following corticosteroid priming in chronic hepatitis B.
abstract: A 21 year-old male patient with chronic hepatitis B was treated with lamivudine 150 mg daily after withdrawal of a short course of oral prednisolone (30 mg daily for 3 weeks, 15 mg daily for 1 week). Serum hepatitis B virus (HBV)-DNA increased during prednisolone pretherapy and serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) was increasing after withdrawal of prednisolone. Clearance of HBV-DNA with hepatitis B e antigen seroconversion and ALT normalization occurred within 2 months after starting lamivudine therapy. If this dramatic response to lamivudine therapy after corticosteroid priming is confirmed by further studies, the regimens used in this particular case might become a powerful therapeutic tool for chronic HBV infection.
authors.affiliation: Liver Research Unit, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University, Taipei, Taiwan. liveryfl@tp.silkera.net
authors.forename: Y F
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Liaw
authors.forename: R N
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Chien
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000328:Adult; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens / Q000032:analysis; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D019259:Lamivudine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D011239:Prednisolone / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D004279:DNA, Viral; D005938:Glucocorticoids; D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors; D019259:Lamivudine; D011239:Prednisolone; D000410:Alanine Transaminase