The Safety of Anti-viral Therapy in Preventing HBV MTCT in Pregnant Women After Discontinuation

Between June 2015 and December 2017, 111 mothers were enrolled during their visit to the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics or the Department of Infectious Diseases of the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China. Pregnant women fulfilling the inclusion and exclusion criteria were offered participation in the study. All pregnant women who opted for AVT need to sign a consent form and started on oral telbivudine (LDT) 600 mg or tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) 300 mg (as per patients' wishes) daily between gestational weeks 24 and 28. Serum levels of HBV DNA, HBsAg, HBsAb, HBeAg, HBeAb, liver function tests, haematology and renal biochemistry were measured at baseline(i.e. at screening), every 4 weeks after treatment begins, at the time of delivery, and at 1, 2, 3, 6, 12 month postpartum. After delivery, treatment with LDT or TDF was immediately withdrew to the patients with an intention of breastfeeding, while the other patients, without desire of breastfeeding, would subsequently extend antiviral treatment duration to postpartum 6 weeks. All infants were vaccinated with genetically engineered HBV vaccine 20 ug according to a standard vaccination regimen (i.e. within 12h of birth, at week 4 and at week 24) and 200 IU doses of hepatitis B immunoglobulin immediately (within 2h) after birth and at day 15. The infant's HBV serologic status and HBV DNA were tested at birth (before immunization) and again at 7 months. The investigators discussed the postpartum liver function after withdrawal and evaluated the impact of extending the postpartum duration of AVT administered for the prevention of perinatal transmission.