Focus on the special population with hepatitis B virus infection: Early diagnosis, early treatment, and early benefits

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a major public health problem worldwide. With the extensive prophylactic vaccination with hepatitis B vaccine for neonates and an increasing number of patients receiving antiviral treatment, remarkable achievements have been made in HBV infection among Chinese children. However at present, there is still a high HBsAg-positive rate among the adults in China, and with more and more special populations, it is necessary to perform timely screening and diagnosis and give antiviral therapy as early as possible, so as to prevent or delay the progression to liver cirrhosis, liver failure, and hepatocellular carcinoma after HBV infection. The selection of treatment timing and drugs should not only focus on HBV virology and liver function, but also consider chronic underlying diseases, mother-to-child transmission, and reactivation of HBV in patients receiving chemotherapy and immunosuppressants, thereby realizing the timely screening, diagnosis, and treatment of the population at a high risk of HBV and special populations and bringing more benefits to patients.