Organizing Pneumonia in a Patient following Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis B with Pegylated Interferon alfa-2b: A Case Report

Abstract

Abstract Background Chronic hepatitis B is a major cause of liver disease in China. One of the treatments currently recommended is interferon (IFN). Our case report is of a patient who acquired organizing pneumonia after he was treated for hepatitis B with pegylated IFN alfa-2b. To the best of our knowledge, such a case has never been reported in the literature. Case presentation A 49-year-old male with a 15-day history of nonproductive cough, fever and shortness of breath was admitted to our fever outpatient department. Prior to admission, he has been receiving IFN alfa-2b (180mcg/week/SC) for ten months to treat chronic hepatitis B. High-throughput gene detection of pathogenic microorganisms in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) was negative. After completing lung CT and lung biopsy, the organizing pneumonia was diagnosed. The patient recovered with the use of corticosteroids. Conclusion We aim to raise awareness of the potential pulmonary toxicity associated with the increasing use of interferon in China for treating patients with chronic hepatitis B.