Acute hepatitis B usually resolves by itself. Once you have developed chronic hepatitis B, few treatment options exist. The doctor may recommend monitoring your liver function frequently or treatment with antiviral medications.  Unfortunately, these drugs all have serious side effects and many of them are expensive. One antiviral treatment is interferon, an antiviral molecule that naturally occurs in the body. Taking additional interferon through injections may help the immune system fight off the virus. It produces remission in some people but recurrence of the infection is common. Other antiviral treatments work by preventing HBV from replicating inside your cells; these include Telbivudine (Tyzeka), Entecavir (Baraclude), Lamivudine (Epivir-HBV), and Adefovir dipivoxil (Hepsera).

If the liver becomes severely damaged by cirrhosis to the point of liver failure, a liver transplant is the only option.