Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection in Zambia (HUTCH)

June 10, 2026 updated by: Michael Vinikoor, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection in Zambia: a Prospective Clinical Cohort Study

Chronic hepatitis B virus infection is a common condition in Zambia. Among Zambian blood donors, up to 8% are chronically infected with HBV. Despite the burden, awareness of HBV is low in Zambia and the Ministry of Health is in early stages of development of guidelines for HBV screening, treatment, and prevention. The purpose of this clinical cohort study is to characterize the clinical features of chronic HBV infection at UTH and describe treatment and care outcomes. The investigators will enroll 500 adults and follow the cohort for up to 5 years to assess short and long-term viral, serologic, and liver outcomes such as cirrhosis and liver cancer.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Viral hepatitis is the #7 cause of death worldwide, yet it has been neglected when compared to other infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. Chronic viral hepatitis is caused by hepatitis C virus and hepatitis B virus and these infections are most common in low and middle-income countries, notably Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. In Zambia there are limited data, but from an HIV cohort, the investigators of this study described 10-12% prevalence of chronic HBV. To raise awareness of viral hepatitis in Zambia and to generate local data to guide policymakers, the investigators will recruit 500 adults with chronic HBV infection and follow the cohort in an observational cohort study. In the study patients would be managed according to standards of care and no experimental or investigational drugs would be used. The investigators will carefully describe patient clinical characteristics and among those who receive drug treatment, the investigators will describe the effectiveness of that treatment in reducing liver disease.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
326

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Zambia
      • Lusaka, Zambia
        • Tropical Gastroenterology and Nutrition Group

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 99 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

N/A

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

500 adults with chronic HBV infection

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age 18 years or older
  • HBV-infected, defined as any single positive HBsAg assay

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Unable or unwilling to provide informed consent
  • HIV-positive

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
HBV mono-infected (Standard of Care)
500 patients in Zambia
Other: Standard of care
Routine standard of care per Ministry of Health protocol, including blood draws and examinations.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in the percentage of patients with HBV viral suppression (Effectiveness of antiviral therapy in HBV-infected patients)
Time Frame: Baseline and after 1 year of treatment
The percentage of patients with HBV viral suppression.
Baseline and after 1 year of treatment

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Proportion of chronic HBV-infected patients with an indication for antiviral treatment.
Time Frame: baseline, after 1 year of treatment, after 2 years of treatment
Using WHO HBV guidelines, the investigators will determine the proportion of chronic HBV infected patients in the cohort requiring antiviral treatment.
baseline, after 1 year of treatment, after 2 years of treatment
HBV viral control among patients on antiviral treatment
Time Frame: baseline, after 1 year of treatment, after 2 years of treatment
The percentage of patients with viral control defined as undetectable HBV viral load after 1 and 2 years of treatment.
baseline, after 1 year of treatment, after 2 years of treatment
Serologic, virologic, and hepatic features of chronic HBV infection in Zambia
Time Frame: 0 to month 60
HBV patients' demographic characteristics at baseline and clinical characteristics at baseline and at 60 months, including alcohol use disorders diagnosed with AUDIT-C, HBV genotypes, HBV viral loads, prevalence of advanced liver disease (based on non-invasive tests), phase of HBV infection (immune tolerant, HBeAg-positive chronic hepatitis, HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis, and immune control) - based on international guidance.
0 to month 60
Proportion with significant liver fibrosis
Time Frame: 0, 12, 24, 36, 48, and 60 months,
Measure of liver fibrosis using AST-to-platelet ration index (APRI), Fibrosis 4 (FIB-4) and transient elastography.
0, 12, 24, 36, 48, and 60 months,
Incidence and prevalence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)
Time Frame: baseline and after month 60
The number of new HCC cases (among those without evidence of HCC at baseline) divided by the time in the cohort study.
baseline and after month 60

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia
Tropical Gastroenterology and Nutrition Group

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Michael J Vinikoor, MD, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
August 23, 2016

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
November 20, 2024

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
November 20, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 8, 2017

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 16, 2017

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
May 18, 2017

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
June 12, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 10, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • F151224005

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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