If there is a high incidence of chronic liver disease in the mainland, what is it? The answer is only five words: viral hepatitis!
The so-called viral hepatitis refers to the inflammatory reaction of the liver induced by various viral infections. In the mainland, the most high-prevalence type of viral hepatitis is "hepatitis B", even if there is a hepatitis B vaccine and free injections, the virus of hepatitis B in the mainland is still not optimistic.
Relevant studies have shown that the existing hepatitis B virus carriers in the mainland are as high as 70 million, and the number of patients who have developed chronic hepatitis B has reached about 20 million.
So far, there is no complete clinical cure for hepatitis B, which also means that people with the virus need to carry the virus for a long time, or even for life. Patients who develop chronic hepatitis B also need long-term treatment and observation. This makes many patients mistakenly believe that they will not be able to stop taking drugs for the rest of their lives.
As everyone knows, clinical medicine today has put forward several concepts of cure, and after the condition reaches the standard, patients can consider discontinuing the drug. Below, we will analyze the different concepts of cure and understand the criteria for discontinuation of hepatitis B through these:
1. Complete cure cannot be achieved
The so-called complete cure refers to the complete elimination of the hepatitis B virus in the patient's body, and after the end of treatment, the hepatitis B surface antigen cannot be detected at all. Unfortunately, so far, the clinic has not yet developed a drug that completely enters the liver nucleus to destroy the viral DNA, so hepatitis B cannot achieve a complete cure.
Hepatitis B virus DNA is like a lurker, and as long as the right opportunity is waiting, it will come back and recur. This is also why patients need continuous attention and regular review after suppressing the virus;
2. The definition of clinical cure has changed
The hepatitis B virus continues to replicate and can cause harm to the normal functioning of the liver. In general, after the liver function of early hepatitis B patients is restored, it can be regarded as a clinical cure. However, antiviral oral drugs and interferon drugs have emerged. Therefore, the determination of clinical cure is not just one aspect of liver function.
In clinical view, a sustained viral response and a negative hepatitis B surface antigen, or a positive transition of hepatitis B surface antibodies, a normal alanine transaminases index, and mild or no lesions in the liver histology, can be defined as clinical cure;
3. Partial cure but can not stop the drug
When hepatitis B virus DNA meets the negative criteria, but hepatitis B surface antigens can still be detected in the patient's serum, it is clinically called partial cure. This condition often occurs in patients on antiviral therapy.
Although some patients have reached the negative transition standard through antiviral treatment for about half a year, they cannot stop taking drugs without authorization, otherwise the condition is likely to recur, and even lead to drug resistance;
4. Functional cure can be stopped
After a limited course of treatment, the patient's hepatitis B surface antigen has disappeared, with or without hepatitis B surface antigen seroconversion, and no hepatitis B virus DNA is detected in the serum, indicating that the patient has achieved functional cure, in this case the criteria for discontinuation are met.
This criterion is also a clinical goal in the treatment of hepatitis B. However, it is very difficult to achieve a functional cure.
All in all, although the complete cure of hepatitis B has not been achieved so far, this does not mean that patients need lifelong medication treatment, and hepatitis B patients also have the hope of stopping drugs.
Therefore, patients should not give up on themselves, but need to actively cooperate with doctors for scientific treatment and regular review. Especially after discontinuation of the drug, relevant reviews should also be carried out regularly.