Perinatal Outcomes of Patients with Hepatitis B Viral Infection in Pregnancy

Abstract

Purpose: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) virus has been established to infect about 350 million individuals on a worldwide scale. Nearly half of the infection is acquired either perinatally or in early childhood. The infection represents a significant cause of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma–related morbidity and mortality. Materials and methods: This is a retrospective record study conducted at a tertiary care hospital (St John’s Medical College Hospital, Bengaluru) by review of records over the past 5 years (January 2015–June 2021). Results: We identified 85 pregnant women diagnosed as HBsAg-positive during our study period; of which 67 (78.8) patients were <30 years of age while the remaining 18 (21.2) were >30 years of age. The mean gestational age at the time of admission was 37.6 ± 2.5 weeks of gestation. Women who were >30 years of age who are married for >5 years 10 (55.6) and those who are <30 years of age and married for 1–5 years 33 (49.3) were HBsAg-positive, p = 0.014b. It was noticed that gamma-glutamyl transferase was two times elevated in primigravida when compared to multigravida, which was statistically significant (p = 0.037). Meconium-stained liquor 3 (3.5) was the most common intraoperative finding seen in pregnant women who were HBsAg-positive. Conclusion: The development of chronic hepatitis B infection is inversely proportional to the age at which infection occurs. Close monitoring of liver function tests, particularly gamma-glutamyl transferase and antepartum fetal surveillance is important to increase the chance of good outcomes in these pregnancies.