Xu HQ, Wang CG, Zhou Q, Gao YH. Effects of alcohol consumption on viral hepatitis B and C. World J Clin Cases 2021; 9(33): 10052-10063 [PMID: 34904075 DOI: 10.12998/wjcc.v9.i33.10052]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Yan-Hang Gao, PhD, Chief Doctor, Professor, Department of Hepatology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Jilin University, No. 71 Xinmin Street, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China. yanhang@mail.jlu.edu.cn
Research Domain of This Article
Infectious Diseases
Article-Type of This Article
Review
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Hong-Qin Xu, Qiang Zhou, Yan-Hang Gao, Department of Hepatology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Jilin University, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China
Chun-Guang Wang, Department of Surgery, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Jilin University, Changchun 130041, Jilin Province, China
Author contributions: Xu HQ wrote the paper; Wang CG, Zhou Q, and Gao YH edited the manuscript; Gao YH is corresponding author; All authors contributed important intellectual content during manuscript drafting or revision and accepts accountability for the overall work by ensuring that questions pertaining to the accuracy or integrity of any portion of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
Supported bythe National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 81972265; the National Key Research Plan "Precision Medicine Research" Key Project, No. 2017YFC0908103 and No. 2017YFC0908104; the National Science and Technology Major Project, No. 2017ZX10202202 and No. 2018ZX10302206; the National Natural Science Foundation of Jilin Province, No. 20200201324JC and No. 20200201532JC; and Program for JLU Science and Technology Innovative Research Team, No. 2017TD-08.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Yan-Hang Gao, PhD, Chief Doctor, Professor, Department of Hepatology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Jilin University, No. 71 Xinmin Street, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China. yanhang@mail.jlu.edu.cn
Received: February 19, 2021 Peer-review started: February 19, 2021 First decision: March 28, 2021 Revised: April 15, 2021 Accepted: August 25, 2021 Article in press: August 25, 2021 Published online: November 26, 2021
Abstract
The liver is the main target organ for hepatitis viruses and the vital organ for alcohol metabolism. These two factors of viral hepatitis and alcohol abuse in combination can exert dual harmful actions, leading to enhanced damage to the liver. Epidemiological studies have revealed a higher prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among alcoholics than the general population. The interaction of alcohol with viral hepatitis [e.g., hepatitis B virus (HBV), HCV] and the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood. The effects of alcohol on viral hepatitis include promoted viral replication, weakened immune response, and increased oxidative stress. Clinically, alcohol abuse is correlated with an increased risk of developing end-stage liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with chronic hepatitis B and C, suggesting that the combination of alcohol and HBV/HCV lead to more severe liver damage. The influence of mild to moderate alcohol drinking on the HBV-induced liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma among patients infected with HBV remains unclear. Unlike HBV infected patients, no safe level of alcohol intake has been established for patients with HCV. Even light to moderate alcohol use can exert a synergistic effect with viral hepatitis, leading to the rapid progression of liver disease. Furthermore, interferon-based therapy is less effective in alcohol drinkers than in control patients, even after abstinence from alcohol for a period of time. Therefore, abstaining from alcohol is highly recommended to protect the liver, especially in individuals with HBV/HCV infection, to improve the clinical efficacy of antiviral treatment and prevent the rapid progression of chronic viral hepatitis.
Core Tip: (1) Alcohol adversely affects hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections in the liver via promoting viral replication, increasing oxidative stress, suppressing the viral immune responses, etc.; (2) The interaction of alcohol with viral hepatitis contributes to an increased risk of developing HBV- or HCV-induced liver fibrosis, end-stage cirrhosis, and even deadly liver cancer; and (3) Individuals with HBV or HCV infection should abstain from alcohol to slow the disease progression.
