Ask:
I have hepatitis B, and although my condition is stable after treatment, I'm quite worried because my wife is just over a month pregnant. Doctor, could you please tell me how the hepatitis B virus affects pregnant women?
Nguyen Ha ( Hanoi )
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Associate Professor Dr. Do Duy Cuong, Director of the Center for Tropical Diseases, Bach Mai Hospital, answers:
Pregnant women with acute hepatitis B infection have an increased risk of premature birth, low birth weight, and jaundice in their babies. Pregnant women with chronic hepatitis B have an increased risk of gestational diabetes and postpartum hemorrhage.
Furthermore, acute and chronic viral hepatitis in pregnant mothers with positive HBeAg, if not managed and treated promptly, carries a 90% risk of transmitting the hepatitis B virus to the child.
Pregnant women experience increased secretion of adenal corticosteroids from the adrenal cortex, leading to increased viral load. Increased estrogen levels in pregnant women also increase the risk of hepatitis B virus activity, which tends to progressively worsen in the later stages of pregnancy, causing acute hepatitis episodes, affecting safe childbirth, and potentially transmitting the disease from mother to child.
Vietnam is one of the countries with the highest rates of hepatitis B in the world , with an estimated 10 million people infected. The primary mode of transmission remains mother-to-child transmission during pregnancy. Treatment and vaccines for hepatitis B are now available.
Therefore, screening, detecting, and managing women with hepatitis B before, during, and after pregnancy to ensure that their children are not infected with the hepatitis B virus is a very important and urgent task today.
Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/virus-viem-gan-b-anh-huong-den-thai-phu-ra-sao-192240801231732729.htm
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