The progress of antiviral therapy in patients with HBV-related liver failure

Hepatitis B viral infection is a global health threat, with more than 1 million deaths caused by HBV-related liver disease every year. Approximately 1% of HBV-infected patients may end up with liver failure caused by spontaneous or induced factors, and the prognosis is extremely poor. The virulence of HBV is one of the major causes of liver failure and the antiviral treatment is normally given to these patients. But it is controversial if the antiviral therapy improves short-term mortality in these patients. There are many studies shown when add the antiviral drugs (nucleotide analogs) immediately may improve the survival, but in the late-stage the survival have no significant difference. For these patients who are waiting for the liver transplantation, the nucleotide analogs are still needed to prevent the recurrence of HBV. However, after antiviral treatment cessation, the disease relapse and severe acute exacerbation of hepatitis is common, therefore long-term antiviral treatment and potent drugs with low drug resistance are recommended for the HBV-related liver failure patients.