The persistent hepatitis B virus (HBV) viral infection known as chronic hepatitis B is a significant global health challenge affecting millions worldwide and predisposing them to develop severe complications, including liver cirrhosis, hepatic decompensation, and hepatocellular carcinoma. The understanding of chronic hepatitis B has evolved over the years, leading to significant advancements in its diagnosis, management, and prevention. The discovery of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and the development of assays for its detection has improved the diagnosis. The introduction of effective antiviral therapies has also revolutionized the management of chronic hepatitis B, reducing liver inflammation and preventing liver-related complications. Vaccination has also played a crucial role in preventing new infections and reducing the burden of chronic hepatitis B.
However, despite effective preventive measures such as vaccination and therapeutic approaches such as antiviral development, several challenges persist, including reaching vulnerable populations in vaccination programs, or drug resistance and long-term safety concerns of antiviral therapies. Hence, chronic hepatitis B continues to be a prevalent and challenging health issue worldwide. This comprehensive Research Topic aims to explore the present-day landscape of managing chronic hepatitis B infection and identify potential directions for future advancements in the field. It will critically analyze the current predictive, diagnostic, therapeutic, and monitoring approaches for chronic hepatitis B. Additionally, this topic will explore the impact of vaccination programs on disease prevention and control. The ultimate goal is to improve patient outcomes, reduce the burden of liver disease, and work towards achieving the global targets set by international health organizations for hepatitis B control and elimination.
Researchers, clinicians, and experts in the fields of hepatology, infectious diseases, virology, public health, and related disciplines are encouraged to submit original research articles, reviews, mini-reviews, systematic reviews, case reports, perspectives, short communications as well as theoretical papers, opinions, and methods relevant to this article collection that will cover topics such as (but not limited to):
- novel predictive and diagnostic approaches: molecular detection techniques of HBV such as real-time PCR and digital PCR; Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) of HBV genome; liquid biopsies of circulating cell-free HBV DNA; analysis of serum biomarkers to assess liver fibrosis, inflammation, and HCC; imaging techniques such as transient elastography (FibroScan), magnetic resonance elastography (MRE), shear wave elastography (SWE), or contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS)
- innovative pre-clinical and clinical therapeutic approaches: novel nucleos(t)ide analogues-based antiviral agents; immune-based therapies such as Pegylated Interferon-Alpha (Peg-IFNa); therapeutic vaccines; RNAi therapies; CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing techniques and combination therapies
- monitoring techniques: quantification of HBsAg and hepatitis B Core-Related Antigen (HBcrAg); ultra-sensitive HBV DNA detection techniques and HBV RNA detection methods; liquid biopsies; and advanced imaging modalities in disease monitoring
- impact of vaccination programs on disease prevention and control: analysis of key measures such as vaccination coverage and birth dose coverage, HBsAg prevalence, hepatitis B incidence, seroprevalence of anti-HBs, impact on high-risk groups, and socioeconomic factors influencing patients
The persistent hepatitis B virus (HBV) viral infection known as chronic hepatitis B is a significant global health challenge affecting millions worldwide and predisposing them to develop severe complications, including liver cirrhosis, hepatic decompensation, and hepatocellular carcinoma. The understanding of chronic hepatitis B has evolved over the years, leading to significant advancements in its diagnosis, management, and prevention. The discovery of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and the development of assays for its detection has improved the diagnosis. The introduction of effective antiviral therapies has also revolutionized the management of chronic hepatitis B, reducing liver inflammation and preventing liver-related complications. Vaccination has also played a crucial role in preventing new infections and reducing the burden of chronic hepatitis B.
However, despite effective preventive measures such as vaccination and therapeutic approaches such as antiviral development, several challenges persist, including reaching vulnerable populations in vaccination programs, or drug resistance and long-term safety concerns of antiviral therapies. Hence, chronic hepatitis B continues to be a prevalent and challenging health issue worldwide. This comprehensive Research Topic aims to explore the present-day landscape of managing chronic hepatitis B infection and identify potential directions for future advancements in the field. It will critically analyze the current predictive, diagnostic, therapeutic, and monitoring approaches for chronic hepatitis B. Additionally, this topic will explore the impact of vaccination programs on disease prevention and control. The ultimate goal is to improve patient outcomes, reduce the burden of liver disease, and work towards achieving the global targets set by international health organizations for hepatitis B control and elimination.
Researchers, clinicians, and experts in the fields of hepatology, infectious diseases, virology, public health, and related disciplines are encouraged to submit original research articles, reviews, mini-reviews, systematic reviews, case reports, perspectives, short communications as well as theoretical papers, opinions, and methods relevant to this article collection that will cover topics such as (but not limited to):
- novel predictive and diagnostic approaches: molecular detection techniques of HBV such as real-time PCR and digital PCR; Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) of HBV genome; liquid biopsies of circulating cell-free HBV DNA; analysis of serum biomarkers to assess liver fibrosis, inflammation, and HCC; imaging techniques such as transient elastography (FibroScan), magnetic resonance elastography (MRE), shear wave elastography (SWE), or contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS)
- innovative pre-clinical and clinical therapeutic approaches: novel nucleos(t)ide analogues-based antiviral agents; immune-based therapies such as Pegylated Interferon-Alpha (Peg-IFNa); therapeutic vaccines; RNAi therapies; CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing techniques and combination therapies
- monitoring techniques: quantification of HBsAg and hepatitis B Core-Related Antigen (HBcrAg); ultra-sensitive HBV DNA detection techniques and HBV RNA detection methods; liquid biopsies; and advanced imaging modalities in disease monitoring
- impact of vaccination programs on disease prevention and control: analysis of key measures such as vaccination coverage and birth dose coverage, HBsAg prevalence, hepatitis B incidence, seroprevalence of anti-HBs, impact on high-risk groups, and socioeconomic factors influencing patients