Emerging Patterns off Hepatitis B Chronic Liver Disease in Australia

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Abstract
Summary: Emerging patterns of hepatitis B chronic liver disease in Australia. G. W. McCaughan, C. Parsons and N. D. Gallagher, Aust. N.Z. J. Med., 1979, 9, pp. 359–364. Until now, the hepatitis B virus has been thought to play a minor role in the aetiology of chronic liver disease in Australia. This is a report of 21 patients with cirrhosis and/or primary hepatocellular carcinoma with hepatitis B antigenaemia. Primary hepatocellular carcinoma occurred in six patients, five of whom had underlying cirrhosis. The disease occurred mainly in non‐Australian born males, and was not often associated with a previous history of hepatitis. The death of 16 patients within 12 months of presentation is in contrast to previous concepts of the benign nature of hepatitis B associated cirrhosis.