Hepatitis B virus

Abstract

Hepatitis B is the most common form of viral hepatitis with more than 400 million people chronically infected. Of these chronic carriers, around 25% will develop serious liver disease, including cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. In Australia, it is estimated that 1% of the population is chronically infected with hepatitis B; around 50% have a South East Asian background. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.