I don’t know where will this question fits,so i just wrote in new topic.
What’s is the reason some of very healthy adults couldn’t clear off the virus during the early phase.
Is it because of poor diet,alcohol&cigarettes use not knowing that they have the virus.
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That is a very good question. It would be interesting to know how that 5% was determined in the first place. As far as I understand there is no way to find out when someone was infected, whether as a child or adult. Since the course of the disease can be completely symptom-free, I assume that the 5% refers only to people who had symptoms and went from acute hepatitis to chronical. This would actually mean that this number has no real significance. It could be that there are many more people than just these 5% who have successfully fought off the virus. Maybe one of the @HealthExperts can say something about this 5%.
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Hi 12345678,
Is your question about the 5-10% adults who are unable to clear their infection when exposed? I can think of why 90% of children exposed at childhood develop chronic infection (because their immunity is not fully effective at fighting tough viruses like hepatitis B). But with adults I can’t think of anything. I will guess that the immune system might have some role in that situation probably more than ones diet. I stand corrected on this though. Great question. Bright.
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Indeed, this is a good question and I don’t think anyone really knows why.
A lot of research is still going on in this space and it’s really important too. Most likely it’s something to do the the person’s immune system, so if we can find out what are the important factors in clearing the virus, then we can possibly harness it to develop a HBV cure.
Thomas
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If the question is why 5% of the adult patients hospitalized for an acute hepatitis B do not clear HBV within the first 12 to 24 weeks, the answer is basically unknown. However, the proportion is much less than 5%, less than 1%, if we consdier only immunocompetent, hospitalized adult subjects. By contrast, the probaility of becomeing a chronic HBV carrier is unknown if we consider acute HBV infection without hospitalization and without jaundice and without elevated ALT levels
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The reason why i am asking is i was diagnosed in 2021 sept, probably i was expose in the late 2019&2020 at the ages of 28/29.A year before that i was negative for hbv,I did a medical test in 2019 as per my job requirement that included hbv&hiv all negative. I am a very fit and healthy adult who never use to get sick,i haven’t been in my life admitted to hospital for sick. Since i was daignose in 2021 everday i ask myself why i can’t clear this virus from my body. Why am i among the unlucky 5% of adults who cant clear.I never had any symptoms before or even a slight clue of hbv even till now. I use to smoke and drink beer those days before i was daignose, so i was just wondering did those bad stuff compromise my immune system.
Also in 2019 i had many vaccine since i was travelling abroad that year. I had yellow fever vacs,mmr and hepatitis A, but unfortunately not hep b vaccine, thus all this vaccine also weakened the immune systems. Otherwise i am a very healthy adult.
Thank you to the experts and members for participating in my question.
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Again, I believe the science is still unclear. I don’t think anyone can be sure about what had led to your chronic infection and whether the factors you mention had anything to do with it at all.
It is almost certainly not due to the other vaccinations, which are more likely to boost your immune system rather than weaken them.
In the end, it’s not worthwhile to blame yourself as you did not know about these things before. It’s a tough world already and we all should be kind, especially to oneself.
TT
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I gotten the hepatitis A vaccine few years ago. Probably 2 to 3 years of finding out about my hepatitis B. I found out I had hep b over the phone at work, which sucked. Had no idea what it was beforehand. I am most definitely sure the hospitals in Korea probably reused needles. I was in the hospital after a car accident and remember getting IVs. Also remember they use to re use the syringe needles. Just would change out the needle part. Anyways.
With hep A vaccine, I was ok afterwards.
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The best study was published by Seef LB et al looking at US soldiers infected from contaminated yellow fever vaccine and in fact the risk in adults is much much lower (<1%). So many experts also do not believe this 5% of adults become chronically infected.
“Natural history study of US soldiers infected with contaminated Yellow Fever Vaccine. Seef LB, NEJM 1987.” A serologic follow-up of the 1942 epidemic of post-vaccination hepatitis in United States Army personnel (affected ~50,000 with icteric hepatitis). Only 0.26% developed chronic HBsAg positive carrier.
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Hi Dr. @ThomasTu
I am having the same question. Do we have any studying on those who has Hepatitis B and after a few months they become negative? What happened in their body or immune system.
As I remember in 2006 my family tested for Hepatitis B. Me and My older sister got Hepatitis B. But after a few months she got recovered and become negative. While I am become chronic patient.
Noted that. During that time my sister never drinking alcohol while I was drinking ( before testing for Hepatitis B )
I want to read the research paper also if there are any.
Thank
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Probably smoking. Im a smoker, and sadly didnt clear the virus, the smoking killed my immune system, cant believe governments allowed those killer companies to sell it.
The governments should all be replaced with good people because evil is taking over. First i tought it was bs and conspiracy theory but no they really ******** us up. A cure? Never not with the billionaires running the medical field
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The most accurate answer is “we don’t know”. It is very difficult to do these studies, as by the time someone comes in to test their hep B status, the parts of the immune system that are activated to clear the infection have already passed.
According to the paper quoted by @cscoffin above, it is not likely to be a single factor such as smoking or drinking. The almost 40,000 US soldiers exposed to Hepatitis B due to contamination of a yellow fever vaccine, only 0.26% developed chronic infection. Many of these people would have been smokers and/or drinkers, so it doesn’t explain this low rate. It is likely due to a complex combination of factors including: the dose, the age of the person, their gender, their ethnicity, what other infections they had, etc.
There’s no simple answer here, but scientists are very interested in trying to tease out these details.
Thomas
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I was diagnosed in February, but I started symptoms since December (raised ALT and fatigue). I was diagnosed as chronic about a month ago, so it looks like I went from an accute to a chronic infection.
I’m 31, non-smoker also overall pretty healthy! I am also trying to understand what happened because I struggle to “accept my bad luck”. I’ve been going to therapy and my therapist says that viruses have no “morality” which has been somewhat comforting. It’s just really hard to come to terms with the fact that even with such good odds to beat the virus as an adult, your body still fails you…
I got infected with Covid-19 last summer (I was fully vaccinated and my symptoms were mild) so I wonder if my immune system was still weak and that played a role in my infection. I was probably infected with Hep B about a month or two after I got Covid.
Luckily, I’ve learnt to listen to my body and I was able to act even on the slightest symptoms and got a diagnosis.
Are there any studies of the potential causes? I’d be interested in learning a bit more. This virus is awful but also super interesting lol
-A
Hi @ale92,
Given this description, there isn’t any guarantee that you were only exposed in December. Hepatitis B is a silent disease and may lay dormant in the liver without causing symptoms for decades. I myself have been living with Hepatitis B for the last >30 years and have not had obvious symptoms driven by the virus.
The idea that infection with 1 virus could induce immune activation against another virus is probably out there and I myself have also often wondered the same thing. I hope maybe @nina.le.bert, @mat, or other @ScienceExperts might be able to provide some overview of the scientific literature around this.
Cheers,
Thomas
Hi @ale92,
I also would be surprised if aSARS-CoV2 infection (that’s the virus that causes COVID-19) would trigger sensitivity to HBV infection or activation of HBV disease. However, SARS-CoV2 messes with the immune system in ways we really do not yet understand, so I’m not willing to totally reject the idea. Basically, science has not caught up with the SARS-Cov2 virus yet!
In general, it is usually less likely to get a second viral infection while symptomatic with a first one. That is because most viruses induce the human type I interferon system (Interferon alpha is a key player in that system). IFN-alpha’s job is to suppress viral infections, so it basically tells your cells “watch out–there’s a virus here!” and turns up our natural antiviral defenses. There are of course examples to the contrary (example: HIV damages people’s immune systems, making them more susceptible to many infections, including viruses), but in general, sensitivity to a secondary viral infection declines during a primary infection.
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