Viral Hepatitis

Course #54994 -

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Overview

Liver failure is a primary cause of mortality and morbidity in the United States. Chronic viral hepatitis is the leading cause of liver failure in this country and throughout the world. Six separate viral species, some with numerous subspecies, have been designated as the hepatitis viruses and are identified by the letters A, B, C, D, E, and G. Some of these viruses are associated with only acute liver disease while others are more commonly identified as causes of chronic liver disease. The classification, clinical presentation, and management of viral hepatitis are discussed. Emphasis is given to hepatitis C, now a treatable disorder and the most common cause of chronic hepatitis leading to cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, and the need for liver transplantation.

Education Category: Infection Control / Internal Medicine
Release Date: 03/01/2024
Expiration Date: 02/28/2027

Table of Contents

Audience

This course is designed for dental professionals in all specialties.

Accreditations & Approvals

NetCE Nationally Approved PACE Program Provider for FAGD/MAGD credit. Approval does not imply acceptance by any regulatory authority or AGD endorsement. 10/1/2021 to 9/30/2027 Provider ID #217994. NetCE is an ADA CERP Recognized Provider. ADA CERP is a service of the American Dental Association to assist dental professionals in identifying quality providers of continuing dental education. ADA CERP does not approve or endorse individual courses or instructors, nor does it imply acceptance of credit hours by boards of dentistry. Concerns or complaints about a CE provider may be directed to the provider or to ADA CERP at www.ada.org/cerp. NetCE is approved as a provider of continuing education by the Florida Board of Dentistry, Provider #50-2405. NetCE is a Registered Provider with the Dental Board of California. Provider Number RP3841. Completion of this course does not constitute authorization for the attendee to perform any services that he or she is not legally authorized to perform based on his or her license or permit type.

Designations of Credit

NetCE designates this activity for 5 continuing education credits. AGD Subject Code 148. This course meets the Dental Board of California's requirements for 5 unit(s) of continuing education. Dental Board of California course #05-3841-24414.

Course Objective

The purpose of this course is to provide dental professionals with a review of normal liver structure and function, common liver function tests used to assess liver disease, and an overview of the current diagnosis and management of primary viral hepatitis.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:

  1. Outline the structure and function of the liver.
  2. Describe the common laboratory measures of liver function and select the appropriate tests to assess the nature and degree of hepatic injury in the patient who presents with hepatitis.
  3. Describe the classification of the various hepatitis viruses.
  4. Discuss the epidemiology, management, and prevention of hepatitis A and E.
  5. Identify the appropriate approach to diagnosis and management of hepatitis B and D, including a strategy for using selective serologic testing.
  6. Design a best practice approach to clinical staging and management of chronic hepatitis C infection.
  7. Discuss the current options for, and efficacy of, directed antiviral therapy of chronic hepatitis C.
  8. Educate patients on the role of liver transplantation in the treatment of end-stage liver disease, including benefits, limitations, and patient selection.

Faculty

Kalynn Matisco, ARNP, PhD, received an Associate Degree in Nursing from Wallace College in Dothan, Alabama, her BSN from Troy State University, her Masters and Doctoral degrees from University of Alabama at Birmingham, and her Nurse Practitioner education at the University of South Alabama. Dr. Matisco has practiced in a variety of settings, including obstetrics, medical-surgical, dialysis, critical care, nursing education, nursing research, and, most recently, infectious disease. She retired from the University of Florida Division of Infectious Disease and Global Medicine in 2018 and now practices in volunteer settings.

Faculty Disclosure

Contributing faculty, Kalynn Matisco, ARNP, PhD, has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.

Division Planner

Mark J. Szarejko, DDS, FAGD

Division Planner Disclosure

The division planner has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.

Director of Development and Academic Affairs

Sarah Campbell

Director Disclosure Statement

The Director of Development and Academic Affairs has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.

About the Sponsor

The purpose of NetCE is to provide challenging curricula to assist healthcare professionals to raise their levels of expertise while fulfilling their continuing education requirements, thereby improving the quality of healthcare.

Our contributing faculty members have taken care to ensure that the information and recommendations are accurate and compatible with the standards generally accepted at the time of publication. The publisher disclaims any liability, loss or damage incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents. Participants are cautioned about the potential risk of using limited knowledge when integrating new techniques into practice.

Disclosure Statement

It is the policy of NetCE not to accept commercial support. Furthermore, commercial interests are prohibited from distributing or providing access to this activity to learners.

Technical Requirements

Supported browsers for Windows include Microsoft Internet Explorer 9.0 and up, Mozilla Firefox 3.0 and up, Opera 9.0 and up, and Google Chrome. Supported browsers for Macintosh include Safari, Mozilla Firefox 3.0 and up, Opera 9.0 and up, and Google Chrome. Other operating systems and browsers that include complete implementations of ECMAScript edition 3 and CSS 2.0 may work, but are not supported. Supported browsers must utilize the TLS encryption protocol v1.1 or v1.2 in order to connect to pages that require a secured HTTPS connection. TLS v1.0 is not supported.

Implicit Bias in Health Care

The role of implicit biases on healthcare outcomes has become a concern, as there is some evidence that implicit biases contribute to health disparities, professionals' attitudes toward and interactions with patients, quality of care, diagnoses, and treatment decisions. This may produce differences in help-seeking, diagnoses, and ultimately treatments and interventions. Implicit biases may also unwittingly produce professional behaviors, attitudes, and interactions that reduce patients' trust and comfort with their provider, leading to earlier termination of visits and/or reduced adherence and follow-up. Disadvantaged groups are marginalized in the healthcare system and vulnerable on multiple levels; health professionals' implicit biases can further exacerbate these existing disadvantages.

Interventions or strategies designed to reduce implicit bias may be categorized as change-based or control-based. Change-based interventions focus on reducing or changing cognitive associations underlying implicit biases. These interventions might include challenging stereotypes. Conversely, control-based interventions involve reducing the effects of the implicit bias on the individual's behaviors. These strategies include increasing awareness of biased thoughts and responses. The two types of interventions are not mutually exclusive and may be used synergistically.