High-normal alanine aminotransferase is an indicator for liver histopathology in HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B.
Hepatol Int
; 15(2): 318-327, 2021 Apr.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33638049
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
We aimed to assess liver histological changes of HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients with normal ALT, and determined the association between significant liver injury and age, ALT, and HBV DNA levels.METHODS:
We retrospectively examined 327 patients who underwent liver biopsy from 2009 to 2018. Significant liver histological change is defined as liver necroinflammation ≥ G2 and/or liver fibrosis ≥ F2.RESULTS:
The proportion of patients with significant liver necroinflammation or fibrosis in the high-normal ALT group (ALT > 20 U/L) was higher than that in the low-normal ALT group (ALT ≤ 20 U/L) (44.6% vs 26.5%, 61.0% vs 41.7%, p < 0.01); also the proportion in the group with HBV DNA ≥ 2000 IU/mL was significantly higher than that in the group with HBV DNA < 2000 IU/mL (58.5% vs 27.1%, 67.9% vs 46.2%, p < 0.01). There was no significant difference in hepatic histopathology between < 40 and ≥ 40 years groups. Among 221 patients with normal ALT and low HBV DNA levels (< 2000 IU/mL), 27.1% of them had significant liver necroinflammation and 46.2% had significant liver fibrosis. The multiple logistic regression analysis showed that ALT > 20 U/L and HBV DNA ≥ 2000 IU/mL were independently associated with significant liver histopathology (p < 0.01).CONCLUSION:
HBeAg-negative CHB patients with normal ALT and low HBV DNA level (< 2000 IU/mL) were suggested to perform liver biopsy or noninvasive methods for histopathology assessment, then to be determined for antiviral therapy. ALT > 20 U/L and HBV DNA ≥ 2000 IU/mL are good independently predictive factors for evaluating significant liver histopathology for HBeAg-negative CHB patients with normal ALT. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR-IOR-14005474).Palavras-chave
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Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Hepatite B Crônica
Tipo de estudo:
Observational_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Hepatol Int
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
China