Treatment:

Acute hepatitis needs no treatment other than careful monitoring of liver function, which involves blood tests. In the rare cases that you develop liver failure, you should be monitored in a hospital intensive care unit (ICU) until you recover or a liver transplant becomes necessary. A liver transplant is the only cure in cases of liver failure.

Liver damage makes it harder for the liver to break down proteins, so protein intake should be restricted. Medications will be given to limit protein production by bacteria in the body.

Chronic hepatitis treatment involves medications to treat infections and reduce inflammation and other symptoms. Liver transplantation is used to treat end-stage chronic hepatitis B liver disease.

For more information on treatment, see liver disease.

Support Groups:

See: Liver disease support group

Expectations (prognosis):

The acute illness usually goes away after 2 to 3 weeks, and the liver usually returns to normal within about 4 months.

Some infected people develop chronic hepatitis.

Hepatitis B is deadly in approximately 1% of cases.

Complications:

There is a higher rate of hepatocellular carcinoma in those who have had hepatitis B than in the general population.

Other complications may include:

• Chronic persistent hepatitis
• Cirrhosis

Calling your health care provider:

Call your health care provider if symptoms of hepatitis B develop.

Call for an appointment with your health care provider if hepatitis B symptoms do not go away in 2 or 3 weeks, or if new symptoms develop.

Call your provider if you belong to a high risk group for hepatitis B and have not yet received the HBV vaccine.