Task: Question Answering
Input (English): Context: Before guidelines were issued, many patients with hepatitis B flare and hepatic decompensation had discontinued lamivudine therapy instead of indefinite therapy. We investigated their outcomes.', 'We performed a retrospective cohort study of 263 consecutive patients with chronic hepatitis B (94 with cirrhosis) who recovered from a flare of hepatitis with hepatic decompensation and were followed after cessation of lamivudine therapy. Clinical events that occurred during the follow-up period were assessed by chart review and analysis of results from retrospective assays.', 'The mean duration of lamivudine therapy was 12.1 ± 8.6 months; data were collected from patients for 89.1 ± 38.7 months after therapy ended. In the first year off therapy, 29.9% of patients had clinical relapse, 16.2% had hepatitis flares, and 8.2% had hepatic decompensation. There was no significant difference in the incidence of hepatic decompensation between patients with and without cirrhosis. Hepatocellular carcinoma developed in 14 patients 20-109 months after cessation of therapy, with 5-year cumulative incidence of 5.2% in patients with cirrhosis. Three patients with cirrhosis died of hepatic decompensation 38-76 months after cessation of therapy (5-year cumulative mortality, 2.9%). Multivariate analyses showed that men were more likely than women to have recurrence of hepatic decompensation (hazard ratio [HR], 4.339; P = .014). Liver cirrhosis (HR, 2.766; P = .041) and age (HR, 1.054; P = .023) increased risk for hepatocellular carcinoma.\Question: Do clinical events after cessation of lamivudine therapy in patients recovered from hepatitis B flare with hepatic decompensation?
Output (English): Cessation of lamivudine therapy after recovery from hepatitis B flare with decompensation was safe for most patients. However, 8.2% develop decompensation within 1 year and can be rescued by timely retreatment. With close monitoring, the stopping strategy could be a feasible alternative to indefinite therapy, especially in low resource settings.