Junior Doctors’ Knowledge about Chronic Hepatitis B Guideline: A Survey Among 30 Primary Hospitals in Sichuan Province of China

Objectives This study aimed to assess the knowledge of junior doctors on the 2015 chronic hepatitis B (CHB) guideline recommended by Chinese society of infectious diseases and Chinese society of hepatology, Chinese medical association. Methods Junior doctors, who were already engaged in the field of CHB, were invited to complete a questionnaire-based survey between May and June 2016. The questionnaire consisted of 28 items focusing on knowledge in the following three sections: mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) prevention, response-guided therapy (RGT) strategies, and special patients’ antiviral therapy. Results Responses were received from 562 out of 600 participants. Among those 562 junior doctors, about 10%~30% were not familiar with the use of hepatitis B vaccine and hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG), and 18.8% did not know that newborn with HBsAg-positive mother could be breastfed after giving HBIG and vaccine. About 20.6% of junior doctors did not know the possible withdrawal indications recommended by the guideline. For HBeAg-positive patients receiving low genetic barrier drugs, about 30% of junior doctors did not know that the antiviral strategies should be adjusted according to HBV DNA levels at treatment week 24. For CHB patients receiving chemotherapy, about 25% of participants did not know antiviral therapy should be started at least 1 week earlier, and about 20% did not know that adefovir dipivoxil or tenofovir disoproxil fumarate should be avoided in patients with kidney diseases or high-risk of developing kidney diseases. Conclusions The knowledge on CHB guideline was rather unsatisfactory in junior doctors. Our finding highlights the urgent need for strengthening junior doctors to gain a greater understanding of CHB guideline.