257 cases of acute hepatitis B were reported between January 1977 and June 1979. This constituted about one-third of all reported acute viral hepatitis cases in Singapore. The mean annual morbidity and mortality rates per 100,000 was 4.4 and 0.12 respectively. The case-fatality rate was 2.7%. The age-specific morbidity rates were high in the 15-24 and 25-34 years age groups, while the ethnic specific morbidity rate was highest in Indians. The male to female ratio was 4.6: 1. Cases were concentrated in urban and suburban areas with high population density. Three outbreaks, one traced to contaminated needles and syringes, one to contaminated tattoo neeedles, and amongst close contacts, were described. Although parenteral procedures were associated with hepatitis B infection (p < 0.005), non-parenteral or inapparent parenteral mode of transmission probably contributes to a significant extent in the transmission of hepatitis B in Singapore. Studies to determine the role of perinatal transmission, and of vectors, in maintaining the endemicity of the disease, were suggested.
A prospective comparative study was carried out on thirty-seven consecutive patients presenting with bleeding oesophageal varices at University Hospital, Kuala Lumpur. All patients received injection sclerotherapy if active bleeding was seen at the time of initial endoscopy, followed by repetitive courses of sclerotherapy to obliterate the varices. Predominant aetiological factors were hepatitis-B cirrhosis (43%) and alcoholic cirrhosis (30%). Chinese ethnic group accounted for 62.5% of hepatitis-B cirrhotics and Indian 73% of alcoholic cirrhotics. After excluding patients lost to follow-up, analysis of the remaining thirty-four patients showed reduced long-term survival in patients with Child's C disease. Log-rank analysis of survival curves between hepatitis-B cirrhosis and alcoholic cirrhosis in patients with Child's C liver disease showed no significant difference in long-term survival (p = 0.07). However, six deaths were seen in hepatitis-B cirrhosis compared to one death in alcoholic cirrhosis in the first eight months of follow-up. Most patients died from progressive liver failure. Median survival for Child's C hepatitis-B cirrhosis was 7.5 months whereas this had not been reached for Child's C alcoholic cirrhosis (median follow-up 11.6 months). We conclude that variceal haemorrhage in Child's C hepatitis-B cirrhosis is a bad prognostic sign and is associated with reduced survival with a median survival of 7.5 months despite control of the variceal bleed.