Along with increasing awareness on hepatitis B, immense knowledge and information has been added in the last decade, particularly on the treatment of chronic hepatitis B. This book Hepatitis B in India: Prevention and Management, conceived on the occasion of the second National Single Theme Symposium on Hepatitis B in India: Therapeutic Options and Prevention Strategies under the auspices of INASL in September 2000, is an honest endeavour of the editors to create an updated and comprehensive manual on hepatitis B, especially in the Indian context. The contributions have been made by the leading e from all over India. In addition, a few areas in which not much national work is available have been covered well by the experts from abroad. The chapters included in this manual which give new dimension to the book are on transmission of hepatitis B in children and neonates, in family contacts, and in injecting drug users; reactivation of hepatitis B; acute on chronic liver disease; HBV genotypes; viral kinetics; screening and prevention of HCC; liver transplantation; HBV mutants; pre- and post-vaccination screening and the need for boosters; economic burden of hepatitis B in India; ideal schedule for vaccinating newborns in EPI in India; vaccine failure, etc. One major highlight of the book is the section on hospital policies in reference to hepatitis B patients. Issues like routine screening for HBV before surgery and policy for HB5Ag positive health care worker are timely and crucial in the Indian scenario. The major thrust has been given to the treatment of chronic hepatitis B. Areas such as combination therapy, steroid priming before interferon, role of herbal drugs and ribavirin have been dealt in detail. The problems of monotherapy, especially YMDD mutations and lamivudine resistance, newer therapeutic non-surgical options for HCC have been incorporated. Treatment of hepatitis B in special cases like children, patients with CRF, HIV coinfection and post-transplant recurrent hepatitis B and use of antivirals in acute hepatitis have been discussed extensively. In addition, two separate chapters on the nutritional supplementation and the instruments to assess the impact of treatment on the quality of life are the other features of the book. The editors feel that this manual shall be found useful by the students, clinicians, epidemiologists, basic scientists and the policy makers at large, not only in India but elsewhere also. 1 epidemiology of hepatitis B virus infection in india. 2 pathogenesis, clinical presentation and diagnosis of hepatitis B. 3 hepatocellular carcinoma and hepatitis B virus infection. 4 prevention of hepatitis B virus infection in india. 5 hepatitis B vaccination. 6 treatment of chronic hepatitis B. 7 management of special groups with chronic hepatitis B.