Entecavir to Treat Hepatitis B–Associated Cryoglobulinemic Vasculitis
Authors: Masaru Enomoto
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2008)

LettersDecember 16, 2008Entecavir to Treat Hepatitis B–Associated Cryoglobulinemic VasculitisMasaru Enomoto, MD, Takeshi Nakanishi, MD, Masamitsu Ishii, MD, Akihiro Tamori, MD, and Norifumi Kawada, MDMasaru Enomoto, MDFrom Osaka City University, Abenoku, Osaka 545-8585, Japan., Takeshi Nakanishi, MDFrom Osaka City University, Abenoku, Osaka 545-8585, Japan., Masamitsu Ishii, MDFrom Osaka City University, Abenoku, Osaka 545-8585, Japan., Akihiro Tamori, MDFrom Osaka City University, Abenoku, Osaka 545-8585, Japan., and Norifumi Kawada, MDFrom Osaka City University, Abenoku, Osaka 545-8585, Japan.Author, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-149-12-200812160-00019 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Background: Hepatitis C virus infection is associated with mixed cryoglobulinemia (1). The association of hepatitis B virus (HBV) with cryoglobulinemia is less certain, and treatment is nonspecific.Objective: To describe a patient with HBV-associated cryoglobulinemic vasculitis that resolved with entecavir.Case Report: A 57-year-old Taiwanese woman was referred to us because of a purpuric rash on her legs (Figure). Skin biopsy specimens showed leukocytoclastic vasculitis in the upper dermis. Her aspartate aminotransferase level was 143 U/L, alanine aminotransferase level was 119 U/L, γ-glutamyltransferase level was 27 U/L, total bilirubin level was 29.1 μmol/L (1.7 mg/dL), albumin level was 3.2 g/dL, ...References1. Gumber SC and Chopra S. Hepatitis C: a multifaceted disease. Review of extrahepatic manifestations. Ann Intern Med. 1995;123:615-20 LinkGoogle Scholar2. Sawabe T, Uenotsuchi T, Imafuku S, Kohno H, Arima J, and Horiuchi T. Remission of hepatitis B virus-related vasculitis with lamivudine [Letter]. Ann Intern Med. 2004;140:672-3 LinkGoogle Scholar3. Stecevic V, Pevzner MM, and Gordon SC. Successful treatment of hepatitis B-associated vasculitis with lamivudine [Letter]. J Clin Gastroenterol. 2003;36:451. [PMID: 12702993] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Çakir N, Pamuk ON, Umit H, and Midilli K. Successful treatment with adefovir of one patient whose cryoglobulinemic vasculitis relapsed under lamivudine therapy and who was diagnosed to have HBV virologic breakthrough with YMDD mutations. Intern Med. 2006;45:1213-5. [PMID: 17139120] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Chang TT, Gish RG, de Man R, Gadano A, Sollano J, Chao YC, et al. BEHoLD AI463022 Study Group. A comparison of entecavir and lamivudine for HBeAg-positive chronic hepatitis B. N Engl J Med. 2006;354:1001-10. [PMID: 16525137] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Masaru Enomoto, MD; Takeshi Nakanishi, MD; Masamitsu Ishii, MD; Akihiro Tamori, MD; Norifumi Kawada, MDAffiliations: From Osaka City University, Abenoku, Osaka 545-8585, Japan.Disclosures: None disclosed. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoHepatitis C: A Multifaceted Disease: Review of Extrahepatic Manifestations Subhash C. Gumber and Sanjiv Chopra Remission of Hepatitis B Virus-Related Vasculitis with Lamivudine Takuya Sawabe , Takeshi Uenotsuchi , Shinichi Imafuku , Hiroshi Kohno , Junichi Arima , and Takahiko Horiuchi Correction: Entecavir to Treat Hepatitis B–Associated Cryoglobulinemic Vasculitis Metrics Cited byCorrection: Entecavir to Treat Hepatitis B–Associated Cryoglobulinemic Vasculitis December 16, 2008Volume 149, Issue 12Page: 912-913KeywordsAlanineAlbuminsAminotransferasesAntibodiesAntigensAttentionBilirubinBiopsyChronic hepatitis BCreatinineDNAHemoglobinHepatitis AHepatitis BHepatitis B virusHepatitis C virusNucleosidesPlateletsRashesVasculitis ePublished: 16 December 2008 Issue Published: December 16, 2008 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2008 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...