Abstract Review With Dr. Ke-Qin Hu

Clinical Vignettes

July 2025

In this expert highlight, Dr. Ke-Qin, hepatologist and Director of Hepatology at UC Irvine Medical Center, shares insights from an important abstract (#260296) presented at a recent liver conference. The study focuses on patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) who fall into the so-called "gray zone"—those whose disease does not clearly meet current guideline criteria for treatment. Dr. Ke-Qin discusses how nearly one-third of the 400 patients studied were in this uncertain category, and notably, 37% of them progressed to active disease requiring treatment. Alarmingly, 5% developed hepatic decompensation, a severe form of liver failure. These findings highlight the urgent need to update hepatitis B treatment guidelines and reassess how we identify patients at risk for disease progression. Tune in to understand the evolving landscape of hepatitis B management and the implications for earlier intervention.