Abstract

BackgroundWhile serum hepatitis B surface antigens (HBsAg) play an important role in the diagnosis and assessment of treatment results of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections, it remains unclear whether HBsAg levels normalized to hepatic parenchymal cell volume (HPCV) is a superior indicator of disease state. This study compared the absolute and HPCV-normalized serum HBsAg levels in hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive and HBeAg-negative patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB).MethodsPatients admitted to our institution with CHB were retrospectively included and categorized into the HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative groups. HPCV was calculated based on pathological examination of liver biopsy specimens and theory of sphere geometry. The difference between HBsAg levels and HBsAg normalized to HPCV, and also correlation between HBsAg levels and liver inflammation and fibrosis was analyzed.ResultsAbsolute HBsAg levels (P=0.004), but not HPCV-normalized HBsAg levels (P=0.071) were significantly higher in HBeAg-positive patients compared to HBeAg-negative patients. In HBeAg-positive CHB patients, absolute HBsAg levels were positively correlated with liver inflammation grade (R=0.285, P=0.001) and hepatic fibrosis stage (R=0.351, P<0.001), as were HPCV-normalized HBsAg levels (R=0.640 and 0.742, both, P<0.001). However, in HBeAg-negative CHB patients, only HPCV-normalized HBsAg level were correlated with liver inflammation grade and hepatic fibrosis stage (R=0.640 and 0.785, both, P<0.001).ConclusionsHPCV-normalized serum HBsAg levels, rather than absolute HBsAg levels, were positively correlated with liver inflammation grade and hepatic fibrosis stage in both HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative CHB patients. Thus, HPCV-normalized HBsAg levels may more accurately reflect the pathological progress of CHB patients compared to absolute HBsAg levels.

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