Comparison of relationship between histopathological, serological and biochemical parameters in patients with chronic hepatitis B infection

OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate the relationship between liver histology, alanine aminotransferase (ALT)/aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA levels based on hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) seropositivity status in naive patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). MATERIALS AND METHOD: Naive patients with CHB admitted to our hospital between January 2012 and April 2014 were evaluated retrospectively. The patients were allocated into one of two groups based on HBeAg-seropositivity status. RESULTS: Two hundred and fourteen patients were enrolled in the study. Of these 214 patients, 103 (48.1%) were HBeAg-positive and 111 (51.9%) were HBeAg-negative. In the HBeAg-positive group, positive correlations were found between histologic activity index (HAI) scores and ALT (t=3.3, r=0.31, p=0.001), AST (t=2.8, r=0.27, p=0.005) and HBV DNA load (t=2.5, r=0.24, p=0.014). Additionally, in this group, fibrosis scores had positive correlations with ALT (t=3.3, r=0.32, p=0.001) and AST (t=2.7, r=0.26, p=0.008). In the HBeAg-negative group, positive correlations were found between HAI scores and ALT (t=3, r=0. 28, p=0.003), AST (t=3, r=0. 28, p=0.003) and HBV DNA (t=5.3, r=0. 45, p=0). In this same group, fibrosis scores had a positive correlation with HBV DNA (t=2.2, r=0. 21, p=0.024). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed a positive relationship between fibrosis and ALT in the HBeAg-positive group and a positive relationship between fibrosis and HBV DNA load in the HBeAg-negative group. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that HBV DNA load is an independent predictive factor for evaluating HAI and fibrosis in the HBeAg-negative group. Also, ALT is an independent predictive factor for evaluating fibrosis in the HBeAg-positive group.