A Prospective Study on Fetomaternal Outcomes in Asymptomatic Chronic Hepatitis B Pregnant Women in a Tertiary Level Hospital

Introduction: Hepatitis B surface Antigen (HBsAGg) prevalence among pregnant women in India is between 0.9-3.1%. The most important factor in determining the prevalence is transmission from asymptomatic chronic Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) mother to newborn. This study was done to observe antiviral treatment and fetomaternal outcome in asymptomatic HBV mothers. Aim: To study fetomaternal outcomes in asymptomatic chronic hepatitis B pregnant women. Materials and Methods: This prospective cohort study enrolled 125 HBsAg seropositive singleton pregnancy over a period of 18 months from October 2020 to March 2022 at Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India. Chronic Hepatitis B (CHB) was diagnosed when HBsAg, HBeAg or HBV DNA was present and IgM antiHBc was absent. Tenofovir was started in consultation with the Gastroenterologist in women with HBeAg positivity or with high HBV DNA titre ≥200,000 IU/mL or Alanine Transaminase (ALT)> two times the Upper Normal Limit (UNL). All women were followed with Liver Function Test (LFT) till delivery and six weeks postpartum and their fetomaternal outcome were noted. The p-value 2 times the ULN can replace the need of HBV DNA titres for initiation of antiviral therapy in India.