Patient's question:
My wife is an HBV carrier. She told me after we had sex. She said she received active treatment and is now fine. Can an HBV carrier transmit the virus through sexual intercourse again?Doctor's answer:
The main routes of hepatitis B transmission are vertical transmission (mother-to-child), blood transmission, and sexual transmission. Engaging in sexual activity with a hepatitis B carrier without using a condom may lead to transmission, but the outcome of infection is often not severe. In normal adults, the immune system is generally healthy, and most of the body can clear the hepatitis B virus after infection, making it unlikely to develop chronic hepatitis B. Only less than 5% of the population is prone to becoming chronic hepatitis B carriers, and these individuals often have a history of weakened immunity or other chronic underlying diseases. If the body has hepatitis B surface antibodies, it is impossible to contract hepatitis B, as the body's hepatitis B antibodies will rapidly neutralize the virus once it enters the body.