The subject of the study was a group of 10 children, aged 3-11 (2 girls, 8 boys), patients of the 3rd Department of Children Diseases of Medical Academy in Bia3ystok, who were diagnosed with chronic hepatitis type B. The etiology of this disease is infection with HB virus with the following immunologic profile: HBsAg(+), HBeAg(+), anti-HBs(-), anti-HBe(-). The ALAT activity (mean value - 55.0IU) and mean polymerase HBV DNA (4121.8cpm) activity were assessed prior to treatment; the patients showed cellular immunity disturbances. Natural anthroposophical drugs were administered in 4-week cycles as subcutaneous injections: Taraxacum Stanno cultum 0.1% (4 cycles), Hepar/Stannum D15/20 (8 cycles); and Hepatodoron as pills in daily doses. The patients were re-evaluated clinically every 3 months and ALAT and polymerase HBV DNA activity as well as cellular immunity and HBV markers were monitored every 6 months. After 12 months of therapy the following results were obtained: polymerase HBV DNA activity decreased in all of the patients to the mean value of 785.0cpm, sero-conversion in HBeAg/anti-Hbe markers occurred in 12.5% of the children and a tendency to normalization of the cellular immunity measured by rosette test occurred in 87.5% of the patients. These observations show that chronic hepatitis B is accompanied by the disorders of cellular immunity and that that natural drugs can influence the improvement of cellular immunity in patients with this type of hepatitis; they also seem to halt HBV replication which leads to full elimination of the virus from infected liver cells.

Keywords: chronic persistent hepatitis B, children, natural anthroposophical drugs, polymerase HBV DNA, cellular immunity