Title : Challenges that appear in the bone health of chronic hepatitis B patients - Literature review
Abstract:
Hepatitis B is a global public health problem. The fact that this infection progresses and leads to liver cirrhosis and liver cancer, makes it life-threatening. With the evolution of the disease, hepatitis also shows extrahepatic manifestations. Some of them are polyarteritis nodosa, glomerulonephritis, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, cryoglobulinemic vasculitis etc. Osteoporosis is another extrahepatic manifestation that increases bone fragility and increases the risk of fractures. This complicates the health condition of the patient, reducing even more the quality of life.
Purpose: Identification of articles that have studied some of the mechanisms, pathogenesis, risk factors and management of osteoporosis in patients with hepatitis B.
Methodology: The study was carried out based on a literature review that included articles related to the topic of interest, without time limit.
Results: The selection of articles resulted in 11 studies related to the issue of literature review, all full papers, in English language.
Conclusions: From the studies included in the review, it was found that there are several mechanisms such as the imbalance of calciotropic hormones and bone metabolism that decrease bone mineral density. Also, the effect of antiretroviral drugs was identified as another damaging mechanism. The literature review identified a limited number of studies, so further studies are needed in the future to determine the pathogenetic mechanisms. A dynamic follow-up of patients with hepatitis B is needed to evaluate the modifications that occur in their bones. What is known so far regarding the prevention of osteoporosis from hepatitis B is proper treatment, avoiding risk factors and a healthy diet as well as vitamin D supplements.
