Hepatitis B Delta: assessment of the knowledge and practices of hepato-gastroenterologists practicing in non-academic settings in France

Abstract

Background Data on the management of Hepatitis B-Delta (HB-D) by hepatogastroenterologists (HGs) practicing in nonacademic hospitals or private practices are unknown in France. Objective We aimed to evaluate the knowledge and practices of HGs practicing in nonacademic settings regarding HB-D. Methods A Google form document was sent to those HGs from May to September 2021. Results A total of 130 HGs (mean age, 45 years) have participated in this survey. Among HBsAg-positive patients, Delta infection was sought in only 89% of cases. Liver fibrosis was assessed using FibroScan in 77% of the cases and by liver biopsy in 81% of the cases. A treatment was proposed for patients with >F2 liver fibrosis in 49% of the cases regardless of transaminase levels and for all the patients by 39% of HGs. Responding HGs proposed a treatment using pegylated interferon in 50% of cases, bulevirtide in 45% of cases and a combination of pegylated interferon and bulevirtide in 40.5% of cases. Among the criteria to evaluate the treatment efficacy, a decrease or a normalization of transaminases was retained by 89% of responding HGs, a reduction of liver fibrosis score for 70% of them, an undetectable delta RNA and HBsAg for 55% of them and a 2 log 10 decline in delta viremia for 62% of the cases. Conclusion Hepatitis Delta screening was not systematically performed in HBsAg-positive patients despite the probable awareness and knowledge of the few responders who were able to prescribe treatments of hepatitis delta.