Study of clinical profile and outcomes of patients with hepatitis B infection in India

Background: Ubiquitously spread hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of the leading causes of end-stage liver disease. Chronic HBV infection presents with different outcomes including cure, chronic carriers, and death. Objectives: To assess the clinical profile and outcomes of hepatitis B patients admitted in a tertiary care teaching hospital in Mumbai, India. Materials and Methods: This was a single-center, observational, prospective study conducted over a period of 18 months at the medical and gastroenterology wards of King Edward Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, India. All the newly diagnosed patients of hepatitis B infection aged more than 12 years, admitted during the study duration in the medical and gastroenterology wards were included in the study. Results: A total of 77 patients were studied. The clinical presentations of the patients were: abdominal distension (28.6%), jaundice (24.7%), loss of appetite (24%), pallor (18.2%), leg swelling (16%), gastrointestinal bleeding (11%), fever (11%), altered sensorium (10.4%) malena (9%), hepatic failure (7.8%), hematemesis (7.7), abdominal pain (5%), and oliguria (1%). The associated co-morbidities included: diabetes mellitus (15%), chronic kidney disease (18%), hypertension (19.5%), pulmonary tuberculosis (6.4%), and anemia of chronic disease (5%). Following investigations and treatments, 9.09% achieved cure, 79.22% progressed to chronicity, and 11.09% died. Conclusion: The clinical profile of patients with hepatitis B infection in India is varied and associated with some co-morbidities. Less than one tenth of the patients achieve complete cure while majority progress to chronicity. There is need for improvement in public health enlightenment campaign and quality of care for hepatitis B infection in view of the poor outcomes observed in this study.