title: Transplantation in the hepatitis B patient and current therapies to prevent recurrence.
abstract: Hepatitis B is the sixth most common indication for liver transplantation in the United States, accounting for about 7% of all transplants among adults. Transplantation for hepatitis B is especially problematic because the virus is not eradicated and there is great potential for reinfection that can lead to graft failure or death. This risk is higher still in patients with active viral replication and chronic liver disease. Treatment with short-term hepatitis B immune globulin (HBIG) delays reinfection of the allograft, but only long-term treatment with HBIG has led to a decline in the reinfection rate. Combination therapy using HBIG with nucleoside analogues will likely become the standard of care to maintain stable serum titers of protective anti-HBs antibody and to prevent posttransplantation reinfection.
authors.affiliation: Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, California, USA.
authors.forename: S D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Colquhoun
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Belle
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Samuel
authors.forename: T L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Pruett
authors.forename: L W
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Teperman
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000601:surgery*; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines; D006801:Humans; D007116:Immunization, Passive; D007136:Immunoglobulins / Q000627:therapeutic use; D019259:Lamivudine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012307:Risk Factors; D055502:Secondary Prevention; D016019:Survival Analysis
chemical_list: D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines; D007136:Immunoglobulins; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors; D019259:Lamivudine; C045213:hepatitis B hyperimmune globulin