Study suggests hepatitis C patients should consider revaccination with hepatitis B vaccine

Researchers recommend that patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) who have not responded to the hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccine should consider hepatitis C virus (HCV) therapy after treatment and elimination of HCV, according to a study published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. Re-vaccination.

Although previous studies have shown that people with chronic hepatitis C do not respond as effectively to the hepatitis B vaccine as the general public, researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School sought to study whether revaccination after hepatitis C treatment can help, according to a university news release Improve this response. .

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 2.4 million Americans have chronic HCV (approximately 1% of the adult population). What’s more, nearly 15,000 people died from HCV in 2020, and acute HCV cases quadrupled from 2009 to 2019.

For the study, researchers recruited 34 people who were no longer infected with the hepatitis C virus and had previously failed to respond to the hepatitis B vaccine. The findings suggest that revaccination with HBV vaccine after HCV treatment improves response. In fact, approximately 70% of people who previously did not respond to the HBV vaccine develop a response after HCV treatment and elimination.

“This study has broad public health implications for people with hepatitis infection,” co-author Dr. Jose Debes, of the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis, said in a press release. “It is known that the hepatitis B vaccine is not as effective in people with hepatitis C. What was not known until now is that after treatment for hepatitis C, the hepatitis B vaccine appears to be more effective in this population. “This is important because many of these people There is still a risk of hepatitis B infection. “

Previous research has shown that awareness of the hepatitis B vaccine among primary care physicians is generally low and that educating clinicians who treat hepatitis C about the vaccine can improve elimination rates and prevent new hepatitis B cases.

To learn more, click on #HepatitisC or #HBVvaccine. There, you’ll see headlines like “Medicaid recipients miss out on hepatitis C treatment,” “Nurse faces 10 years in prison for passing hepatitis C to 12 patients,” and “Are vaccines safe?” .