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How Is Hepatitis B Infection Treated ?
Question: I take methotrexate 10 tab 1x week 2.5 mg and I use humaria 1injection every other Monday. Tonight I notice a yellow tinge to the white in my eyes and my skin is a pale yellow. I have been diagnosed with hepatitis b non active. How concerned should I be
Hi,
Thanks for your query.
Since you are taking both methotrexate and Humaria for rheumatoid arthritis, it means that you are having a severe degree of disability due to the disease. Both these drugs cause immunosuppression as a side effect which causes old or subclinical infections to flare up whenever there is a chance.
In your case you have been contacted with hepatitis B. Acute hepatitis B infection does not usually require treatment because most adults clear the infection spontaneously. Early antiviral treatment may only be required in fewer than 1% of people, whose infection takes a very aggressive course (fulminant hepatitis) or who are immunocompromised (you come under this category). On the other hand, treatment of chronic infection may be necessary to reduce the risk of cirrhosis and liver cancer. Chronically infected individuals with persistently elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (AAT), a marker of liver damage, and HBV DNA levels are candidates for therapy.
Although none of the available drugs can clear the infection, they can only stop the virus from replicating, thus minimizing liver damage.
Now it needs a careful assessment by your physician if you should be given anti viral therapy or not and does he need to reduce the doses of immunosuppressant drugs. It all depends on the extent of disease control you have achieved with these doses.
I hope this information has been both informative and helpful for you. If there are additional concerns, I am available for your followups.
Regards.
Thanks for your query.
Since you are taking both methotrexate and Humaria for rheumatoid arthritis, it means that you are having a severe degree of disability due to the disease. Both these drugs cause immunosuppression as a side effect which causes old or subclinical infections to flare up whenever there is a chance.
In your case you have been contacted with hepatitis B. Acute hepatitis B infection does not usually require treatment because most adults clear the infection spontaneously. Early antiviral treatment may only be required in fewer than 1% of people, whose infection takes a very aggressive course (fulminant hepatitis) or who are immunocompromised (you come under this category). On the other hand, treatment of chronic infection may be necessary to reduce the risk of cirrhosis and liver cancer. Chronically infected individuals with persistently elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (AAT), a marker of liver damage, and HBV DNA levels are candidates for therapy.
Although none of the available drugs can clear the infection, they can only stop the virus from replicating, thus minimizing liver damage.
Now it needs a careful assessment by your physician if you should be given anti viral therapy or not and does he need to reduce the doses of immunosuppressant drugs. It all depends on the extent of disease control you have achieved with these doses.
I hope this information has been both informative and helpful for you. If there are additional concerns, I am available for your followups.
Regards.
Note: For more detailed guidance, please consult an Internal Medicine Specialist, with your latest reports. Click here..
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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