Newly diagnosed.

[ivymoss]

Hello everyone,

Recently, I went through two blood tests, the first of which confirmed that I was hbsag positive, and the second of which confirmed that I was chronic (VL: 422,000/cc).  The doctor recommended that I go in for a liver biopsy, but I am really very afraid because the process looks painful and risky.  I don't know what these figures really mean.  Could someone please explain to me how bad that is and if the biopsy is really necessary before undergoing treatment?

[sfbaygirl]

Ugggh. I am afraid to have one!  Ihad one scheduled through my new Hep Dr, but the ins. co says I have to go through my group, instead of the good hep dr. to get one. Therefore, I need to find a GI around here to do one. I hated the one I had, it hurt!  I am going for a fibroscan next week and think they are close to gold standard as a BX. How was your bx?  Any difference?  

[frijole]

Hi ivymoss.  Most of us here have hep C so you may have to do a little scrolling to find hep B information.  However, we are pretty knowledgable about liver biopsies.  I had my second one last month, I think they are a necessary evil and not nearly as bad as you may think.  There is a lot of good information on biopsies (we call them bx, by the way) on the Janis7 website.  Here is the addy:

http://janis7hepc.com/biopsy.htm

I consider the bx necessary for hep C - not sure on hep B, but it is the gold standard to determine liver damage, so I recommend having one. There is risk like any invasive procedure, but the risks are low.  Please consider having one.

frijole