Long‐term lamivudine therapy in chronic hepatitis B

Abstract

One to 5years of therapy of chronic hepatitis B with oral nucleoside analogues result in significant clinical improvements, but effects of more prolonged therapy are not well defined. To describe outcomes of chronic hepatitis B with long-term lamivudine therapy. Forty-two patients with chronic hepatitis B treated with lamivudine were followed for 3.2-19.5 (median=16.1)years. Therapy was switched to other agents (n=16) if patients developed lamivudine resistance and relapse of disease. Among 22 HBeAg-positive patients, 17 (77%) became HBeAg negative, of whom 5 (23%) subsequently cleared HBsAg. Among 20 HBeAg-negative patients, 10 (50%) cleared HBsAg. The time to HBsAg clearance ranged from 0.9 to 16.8 (median=9.3) years. Lamivudine resistance arose in 24 patients (57%) of whom 6 (25%) lost HBsAg. HBsAg clearance was not always accompanied by seroconversion; anti-HBs appearing concurrently in only five patients (33%). Nevertheless, HBsAg loss allowed for stopping therapy in all patients, none re-developing HBsAg or suffering relapse; all having normal alanine aminotransferase levels and no (n=13) or unquantifiable HBV DNA levels (n=2) when last seen. In contrast, seven of 27 patients (26%) who remained HBsAg-positive died of liver disease or liver cancer or underwent liver transplantation, all of whom had cirrhosis. Long-term viral suppression with nucleoside analogues leads to HBsAg loss in a substantial proportion of patients, particularly if HBeAg-negative. Serious outcomes during the first 10-20years of treatment occur largely among patients with pre-existing cirrhosis who do not clear HBsAg with therapy.