Hepatitis B HBsAg

General information:

The tests offered by Laborexpress 2000 detect current or previous infection with the Hepatitis B virus (HBV). Some of the tests report viral proteins (antigens) or antibodies produced by the patient's body in response to the infection. There are also those that take into account the genetic material (viral load) of the virus.
Hepatitis B is one of five viruses that cause inflammation of the liver. The virus is transmitted through contact with blood or other body fluids from an infected person. Exposure can occur in various cases: sexual contact, use of shared syringes, operations, dental manipulations, from mother to fetus during birth or after. The virus is not transmitted by casual contact such as shaking hands, coughing, but it lasts up to 7 days in outdoor conditions. Thus, it can be transmitted when using common toothbrushes, razor blades, arbitrary tattooing, piercing. In most cases, patients are not aware of exactly when they were infected.
Hepatitis B vaccine is administered to newborns and to persons at risk of hepatitis infection (medical personnel) or visiting areas with increased morbidity. It is important to note that immunity during vaccination is not 100% and must be monitored periodically (at 3-5 years) to be sure of the patient. However, it is recommended to observe precautions and avoid risk factors.
The course of the disease in different patients differs - from a mild form to a serious chronic infection that lasts for years. In certain cases, chronic carriage leads to serious complications such as cirrhosis or liver cancer.

We distinguish:

• Acute infection – presence of typical hepatitis symptoms with a positive screening test
• Chronic infection - persistent infection with established virus from laboratory tests and liver inflammation
• Carrier (inactive) infection - persistent infection, but without inflammation (a carrier is a person who appears to be in good health, but carries the virus and can potentially infect others)
• Cleared (cured) infection - no evidence of infection is found; viral antigen tests and DNA tests are negative with no symptoms of liver inflammation (although in many cases the virus is integrated into cells in an inactive state)
• Reactivation – return to HBV infection with liver damage in a carrier patient or one who has been diagnosed as cured. This occurs most often in people on chemotherapy or immunosuppressants.

Although hepatitis B is a potentially serious disease, chronicity in most adult patients is relatively low. Unfortunately, in children, chronicity reaches 90% in newborns and drops to 10% in school-aged children.

Symptoms: most patients with chronic hepatitis have no symptoms. In acute forms, the symptoms do not differ from other viral hepatitis: fever, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, icterus (jaundice). In acute hepatitis, the liver does not function normally. It cannot metabolize toxins and other metabolic intermediates such as bilirubin for example. Therefore, it is recommended that the diagnosis of hepatitis be accompanied by liver packs offered by the laboratory.

Hepatitis B surface antigen - (HBsAg) is one of the three most important mandatory first markers in the diagnosis of Hepatitis B.

Diagnosis of acute or chronic infection
The first marker that appears in an acute infection.
Its disappearance is an indicator of recovery from the infection.
Its retention for more than 6 months is an indicator of chronic infection (carriage).
It is possible to give a positive result up to 72 hours after vaccination

A negative result refers to: absence of infection, the test is conducted during the incubation period (too early), inactive (cured) infection. If the result is negative, the patient is a good candidate for the vaccine.
The HBsAg-negative phase is characterized by the loss of HBsAg and the presence of antibodies to HBcAg (anti-HBc), antibodies to HBsAg (anti-HBs) can also be detected. This phase is also known as "occult infection". Patients at this stage show normal ALT values and usually (but not always) an undetectable viral load. HBV DNA (or cccDNA) is often found in the liver. Loss of HBsAg before progression to cirrhosis usually means a minimal risk of developing cirrhosis or liver cancer. However, if the patient has developed cirrhosis before the HBsAg disappears, there is still a risk of developing liver cancer, so regular medical examinations should continue. In patients in such a situation, immunosuppression (for example, due to oncological disease) can lead to reactivation of the virus. In addition, all close relatives and sexual partners of people with chronic HBV infection should also be tested (HBsAg, anti-HBs, anti-HBc) and, if their results are negative, vaccinated against hepatitis B.
All patients with chronic HBV infection are at increased risk of developing cirrhosis or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)

following the degree of liver damage gives more clarity about treatment and the possible risk of hepatocellular carcinoma. It includes physical examination and biochemical parameters (aspartate aminotransferases - AST and ALT, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase - GGT, alkaline phosphatase, bilirubin, serum albumin, gamma-globulins, as well as complete blood count and prothrombin synthesis norms).

Sample required:

Venous blood

Key words:

Hepatitis B, HBsAg