Best Hepatology Hospitals in India

• Hepatitis B carriers are persons who carry the hepatitis B virus in their blood but do not experience symptoms. Between 6% and 10% of persons infected with the virus will become carriers and will be able to infect others without knowing it.

• A considerable proportion of chronic hepatitis B (HBV) patients are in the inactive carrier state, which is characterised by normal transaminase levels, limited viral replication, and little liver necroinflammatory activity. After at least one year of frequent monitoring, a diagnosis is made, and lifelong follow-up is required to ensure that this status is maintained.

• In case there is no improvement in HBVDNA levels, consult your expert but do not stop the medication on your own.

• Drugs prescribed such as Tafero (tenofovir) acts by ceasing the production of new viruses, blocks or slows viral proliferation in human cells, and eliminates the infection and also boost the level of CD4 cells (white blood cells that fight infection) in your blood. Entaliv (entecavir) acts by inhibiting the viral replications processes like reverse transcription, DNA replication and transcription.

Based on the complaints and elevated bilirubin levels you seem to be suffering from a type of liver disorder, a condition wherein excess accumulation of bilirubin (a brown yellow coloured compound formed in breaking down of red blood cells) occurs. With loss of appetite, vomiting, stomach tightness and bloating; fever, extreme fatigue and abdominal pain can also be seen in liver diseases.

• There are multiple causes for development of liver dysfunction such as infection, autoimmune liver diseases like cholangitis, Wilson’s disease, cancer, alcoholic liver (due to alcohol abuse) and non-alcoholic (due to excessive consumption of fats) and drug induced.

• When using a medicine that is known to have the potential to cause liver damage, your doctor may recommend you to have blood tests done on a routine basis after starting the medication so that any signs of liver damage may be recognised before symptoms develop.

• Common medications that can cause damage to the liver include Paracetamol, Statins – drugs for lowering cholesterol levels and certain herbs.

• Other liver function parameters such as AST(aspartate aminotransferase), ALT(alanine transaminase), ALP(alkaline phosphatase) and GGT(gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase) bilirubin are required to be evaluated and additional to this for determining the exact cause of dysfunction especially to confirm presence of jaundice; urinalysis, CT (for distinguishing between biliary obstruction and liver disease including cancer) and liver biopsy (for ruling out concern about possible liver cancer) needs to performed.

• The treatment is based on the underlying cause and damage levels and can range from dietary changes, medications such as antibiotics, sedatives, etc to liver transplants.