Chronic active hepatitis. Prolonged survival without treatment.

A case is presented of a patient with established HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis and cirrhosis of at least 14 years duration. The disease, although untreated, has caused the patient relatively little disability. The implications of the patient's prolonged illness are discussed with reference to current knowledge of chronic active hepatitis. It is concluded that corticosteroid therapy may not be a mandatory requirement for all patients with this disease.