M-F Yuen

..abstract:..

..The present study aims to determine the hepatoprotective effects of berberine on serum and tissue superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels, the histology in tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced liver injury...

..However, there are no differences in the treatment response and rate of emergence of drug-resistant hepatitis B virus between different genotypes to nucleoside/nucleotide analog therapy...

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..Our aims were to study the virologic, histologic, and clinical outcome in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients with hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) seroclearance...

..In conclusion, patients with HCV genotype 6 gain a better response to combined treatment with IFN-alpha and ribavirin than those with HCV genotype 1 and achieve a significantly higher rate of sustained virological response...

..5 times the upper limit of the normal range. Therefore, prolonged, adequate suppression of viral replication should be the practical goal for the treatment of CHB disease in the Asian population...

..Nucleotide/nucleoside analogues will become the mainstay of treatment. Future treatment strategic plans should target maximising antiviral potency and minimising the chance of drug resistance...

..It is effective against both wild-type and YMDD mutant HBV. LB80380 is converted to its parent drug, LB80331, after oral absorption, and further metabolized to its active form, LB80317...

..Comprehensive study on viral factors predicting treatment responsiveness to lamivudine is lacking...

..038, =0.016 respectively). HBV genotype B induces a greater Th1 and lesser Th2 response than genotype C. This provides immunologic evidence for the higher chance of HBeAg seroconversion in patients with genotype B...

..2%, with only 4.5% showing alanine aminotransferase flares. Telbivudine is probably one of the most potent antiviral agents for hepatitis B virus that will become available in the near future...

..The details of liver histology of patients with precore and core promoter mutations are still not clear...

..We aimed to determine the transmissibility of HBV in blood donors with OHB through transfusion in animal and human studies...

..In addition, long-term treatment with these antiviral agents is associated with a reduced risk of development of hepatocellular carcinoma...

..In HBeAg-negative CHB patients, a liver stiffness measurement of ≥ 10 kPa was associated with a significantly increased risk of subsequent HCC development and mortality...

..This study aimed to identify the baseline hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels and on-treatment HBV DNA levels for favourable outcome in patients receiving 5-year lamivudine...

..LB80317 has a long half-life at steady-state, supporting the use of a once-daily dosing regimen. The ingestion of a high-fat diet delays the rate of absorption of LB80380 without affecting the extent of absorption...

..However, transmission of HCV by injection drug use, and rising prevalence of obesity and diabetes, both independent risk factors for HCC, may partly offset this decline...

..Long-term effect of YMDD mutations on liver histology in Chinese hepatitis B patients is unknown...

..To examine the risks for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with respect to hepatitis B virus (HBV) genotypes, specific viral mutations (MT), serum HBV DNA levels, and cirrhosis...

..CONCLUSION: Prolonged low level viraemia causing insidious and continual liver damage, as reflected by ALT levels of 0.5-2x ULN, is the most likely pathway for the development of complications in Asian CHB patients...

..To investigate the level of hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA in Chinese chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients below which hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unlikely to occur...

..034), but not with HAI-F score (P = 0.3). CP mutations were associated with more severe necroinflammation. The association between genotype C and poor histology was probably because of the association between genotype C and CP mutations...

..The major factor for the development of cirrhotic complications was viral loads but cirrhotic complications continued to develop in patients with HBVDNA levels below 10(4) copies/mL...

..CONCLUSION: In the present study we have provided information on HBeAg seroconversion and acute exacerbation, which are important in decision making for CHB treatment and in designing clinical trials...

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..Safety of traditional Chinese medicine in patients with chronic hepatitis B is unknown...

..Screening detected hepatocellular carcinoma at an earlier stage and prolonged survival. Staging systems should be validated in different populations...

..CONCLUSIONS: The removal of difficult common bile duct stones by electrohydraulic lithotripsy and further endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography has a high success rate and a low complication rate even in the elderly...

..The former had a higher chance of earlier HBeAg seroconversion and lower ALT levels. The prevalence of genotype B was lower in patients with age <50, probably related to influx of immigrants from China since 1949...

..CccDNA becomes the dominant form of HBV DNA during viral suppression and is possibly responsible for viral rebound after short-term antiviral therapy...

..However, continuing viral replication, even at a relatively low level of <10(4) copies/mL (<2000 IU/mL), is probably the most important factor for the development of complications...

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..CONCLUSIONS: Compared to the non-tumor tissues, the levels of HBV replication in the tumor tissues appeared to be lower, and cccDNA was the predominant form of HBV DNA in the tumor tissues...

..Genotypes B and C are associated with high prevalence of precore and core promoter mutations, respectively...

..Our aim was to investigate the effects of long-term lamivudine treatment and lamivudine-resistant virus (YMDD) on the development of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in asymptomatic patients without advanced disease...

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..In conclusion, serum HBcrAg levels correlated with HBV virological markers and reflected the chronic hepatitis B disease activity in the liver...

..Intrahepatic HBV DNA level was low and predominantly in the form of cccDNA. However, HCC could still develop, particularly in patients with cirrhosis who had HBsAg seroclearance at an older age...

..1%) in the non-EPT group (p=0.09). CONCLUSION: EPT in patients with acute cholangitis without CBD stones decreased the duration of acute cholangitis and reduced hospital stay but it did not decrease the incidence of RAC...

..But in countries with a high prevalence of HCC, especially when screening is directed at older patients with a high risk of HCC, screening programs for HCC become much more cost-effective...

..Patients with delayed HBeAg seroclearance had a higher frequency of HBeAg seroreversion...

..Adefovir dipivoxil can be recommended as a first-line treatment but can also be used in patients with chronic hepatitis B infection who are failing lamivudine therapy...

..To determine the prevalence of precore and core promoter (CP) mutations before, at and after HBeAg seroclearance in Chinese patients...

..CONCLUSIONS: Though the majority of patients with severe hepatitis exacerbations due to YMDD mutants had uneventful course, early liver transplantation should be considered in patients with pre-existing cirrhosis and HBeAg seroreversion...

..5 months). In conclusion, there is no influence of HBV genotypes on the development of long-term complications and lamivudine therapy in Hong Kong...

..To identify the risk factors for recurrence of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after resection...

..The treatment can be continued for those with HBV DNA levels of less than 4 log copies/mL (2000 IU/mL). The addition of or switch to alternative antiviral agents should be considered for patients who fail to achieve this early target...

..35 vs 0.8 logs respectively, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: One-year lamivudine treatment decreased serum cccDNA level by 2 logs. The chance of YMDD mutations at week 52 was related to the magnitude of viral suppression at week 24...

..Determination of HBV genotypes before lamivudine therapy was probably not an important pretreatment investigation to predict antiviral responses in Chinese patients...

..The association between HBV genotype C and HCC was probably not genuine but was due to the high percentage of CP mutations in patients with genotype C...

..842; P < 0.001) and with the degree of fibrosis (P = 0.014). We conclude that the method that we describe is reliable and convenient for the measurement of intrahepatic HBV DNA levels and has potential clinical significance...

..Biochemical flares were common, with 16% being severe in nature. High pretreatment ALT levels were associated with a higher chance of biochemical flares...

..3% patients had established fibrosis. Further studies to define a better cut-off HBV DNA level to differentiate low- and high-risk patients for disease progression are required...

..02) and regional nodal metastasis (p=0.05). CONCLUSION:E-cadherin methylation is an early event in gastric carcinogenesis, and is initiated by H pylori infection...

..It was concluded that in Chinese patients with chronic hepatitis B infection, lamivudine achieved effective suppression of HBV DNA levels within 4 weeks of therapy whereas famciclovir had a significantly weaker action...

..5 times the upper limit of normal...

..3%; P=.004). Patients with severe exacerbation of hepatitis B with poor prognostic factors should be considered for early liver transplantation...

..Combined with markers of liver reserve and performance status, accurate scoring systems and models have been developed to predict patients' survival and match best treatment option...

..To document the prevalence and factors associated with severe fibrosis and cirrhosis in a large population of Asian chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients...

..We aimed to determine the efficacy of pegylated interferon plus ribavirin for treating infection with genotype 6 versus genotype 1...

..05). A sustained virological response (SVR) was present in 10 (62.5%) patients with genotype 6 and in 7 (29.2%) patients with genotype 1 (P=.04). Genotype 6 has a better response than genotype 1 and is associated with a higher SVR...

..In conclusion, these results support expanded clinical studies of this new agent for the treatment of hepatitis B...

..Lamivudine, and presumably other nucleoside analogues, can reverse cirrhosis of the liver...

..In conclusion, lamivudine therapy can result in HBsAg seroclearance at an early age even though the phenomenon is rare...

..A sustained response occurred in 50% of the patients completing treatment and occurred only in patients with genotypes 1, 3, and 6 but not with quasi species...

..The development of complications was not related to precore mutations but was probably due to the persistence of significant viremia after HBeAg seroconversion...

..Because of the highly effective anamnestic responses, a booster dose was not necessary at least up to 18 years after the primary vaccination...

..Serum and intrahepatic total HBV DNA and cccDNA levels become lower as the disease progresses from HBeAg-positive to anti-HBe-positive phase, with cccDNA becoming the predominant form of intrahepatic HBV DNA...

..Patients infected with genotype B had a significantly higher mortality due to hepatic decompensation than did patients with genotype C (70% vs. 27.8%; P=.05)...

..The cost for assaying each serum sample by using different strategies was calculated. The COBAS-AM assay was more sensitive than the Digene HC II assay and more suitable for monitoring low levels of HBV viremia...

..Complications of endoscopic sphincterotomy are closely related to the endoscopic technique. To date, there have been no studies to indicate that aspirin increases the risk of bleeding after endoscopic sphincterotomy...

..Despite the high percentage of patients who developed hepatic decompensation after TACE, irreversible damage occurred in only a minority...

..The quantities of A(1762)T-G(1764)A mutant were positively and G(1896)A mutant negatively correlated with liver inflammation and viral replication...

..300 copies/ml), shorter assay time (6 vs. 10 hr), and wider dynamic range (8 vs. 3 logs), and was more cost-effective in a clinical setting. These data indicate that the TaqMan test is an excellent tool for HBV DNA quantitation...

..1%) probably because of a higher susceptibility as a result of immunosuppression. However, hepatitis GB virus-C viraemia did not cause liver biochemistry derangement in renal transplanted patients...

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..We aimed to study polymorphisms of type I interferon receptor 1 (IFNAR1) promoter and their potential effects on chronic HBV infection...

..036). CONCLUSION: CC in cirrhotic liver presented at a younger age and patients who developed CC were prone to PVT. The survival period was also shorter in comparison to that of non-cirrhotic liver patients...

..The time for its administration can also serve as an observation period, which is vital in deciding whether definitive surgical treatment of any residual lesions is indicated...

..CONCLUSIONS: This pilot study showed that transcatheter arterial interferon embolization was an effective method for the treatment of patients with inoperable HCC without significant hepatic toxicity...

..Some novel markers including glypican-3 are being extensively studied...

..Further studies should be performed in patients with less advanced disease and/or different etiology to evaluate its benefit...

..The cause of mirtazapine-induced liver toxicity was unknown, and to our knowledge, these are the first reported cases of mirtazapine-induced prolonged jaundice...

..MtxR and ClaR significantly affected the success of eradication therapy. Posttreatment rates of resistance were high and were related to the presence of pretreatment antibiotic resistance...

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..CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that the addition of T1653 mutation in the box alpha to the basic core promoter mutation increases the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with hepatitis B virus genotype C...

..CONCLUSIONS: These findings strongly suggest that the initial spread time of HCV is associated with the progression dynamics of HCC in each area, irrespective of genotype...

..HBV/C subgenotypes have specific mutation patterns, which is probably responsible for increased carcinogenesis of HBV/C2/Ce...

..Sequential therapy with lamivudine followed by IFN-alpha seems to have better sustained virologic response. However, the long-term beneficial effect of using this approach remains to be defined...

..In conclusion, HBV genotype A and D did not have a significant impact on clinical outcomes of LT for HBV-related liver disease in patients of European origin. These data do not support routine HBV genotyping in liver transplantation...

..These antiviral treatments reduce liver fibrosis progression and can reverse cirrhosis. Unfortunately, even in developed countries, death due to hepatitis C is increasing because of inadequate detection and treatment...

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