My brother is diagnosed with hepatitis B. Please suggest treatment options and food restrictions.

Question

Hello doctor,

My younger brother is 27 years old. He is diagnosed with hepatitis B. Hepatitis delta antibody is non-reactive and quantity of HBV DNA is 7000 IU/ml (international units per milliliter)

We have done the following tests for him.

1. ALT (SGPT) =50.

2. Total bilirubin ( 1.90).

3. Direct bilirubin (0.41) is not normal.

4. Hepatitis B antigen - non reactive.

5. Hepatitis B antibody - reactive.

6. Neutrophils - 69%.

7. Monocytes - 8%.

8. Lymphocytes - 23%.

9. MPV - 10.7 fL.

10. Eosinophils - 0%.

11. Basophils - 0%.

He also carried out shear wave elastography. And the Metavir fibrosis score is F0. I have not shared this news with my family. Only my brother and I know it since my mother is a heart patient. How may we know that hepatitis is acute or chronic? What other tests can you suggest? Our doctor prescribed antiviral medication. Should we go for antiviral medication as per the prescription of the doctor? Kindly share detailed guidelines. If you need copies of the reports, I can share them with you. Also, suggest the food guidelines for the patient.

Please help.

Thank you.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

It looks like your brother has chronic hepatitis B, which is in an inactive carrier state. I would like to see his USG (ultrasound) and platelet count. I do not think that there is anything serious in it, and he also does not need any treatment for it at the moment.

As far as acute vs. chronic is concerned, then you have to do Hbc-IgM. This will help us to distinguish between these two conditions. There is no need for any restrictions on the food. His razor, toothbrush, nail cutter, and comb should not be shared.

I hope this helps.

Do follow up whenever needed.

Let me know if I can assist you further.

Thank you.