Histopathological Assessment of Liver
Biopsy Specimen in the Context of HBV
DNA and HBeAg in Patients with
Chronic Hepatitis B
Naznin Nahar, AJE Nahar Rahman, Saequa Habib
Citation Information :
Nahar N, Nahar Rahman A, Habib S. Histopathological Assessment of Liver Biopsy Specimen in the Context of HBV DNA and HBeAg in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B. Euroasian J Hepatogastroenterol 2011; 1 (2):83-88.
Background: There is lack of consensus if hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA can be regarded as a surrogate marker of liver damages in patients
with chronic hepatitis B (CHB).
Methods: A total of 77 patients with CHB were enrolled in this study. The sera of the patients were tested for HBV DNA and hepatitis B e
antigen (HBeAg). The extent of hepatitis and hepatic fibrosis was assessed by liver biopsy.
Results: Out of total of 77 patients with CHB, 29 were HBeAg-positive and 48 were HBeAg-negative. Twenty-seven of 29 HBeAg-positive
patients and eight of 48 HBeAg-negative patients had high levels of HBV DNA (HBV DNA>105 copies/ml). The extent of hepatitis was
minimal or mild in most HBeAg-positive CHB patients (27 of 29) irrespective of the levels of HBV DNA in the sera. Moderate levels of
hepatitis were seen in two HBeAg-positive patients and five HBeAg-negative patients. Moderate levels of hepatic fibrosis were seen in four
of eight HBeAg-negative patients with high HBV DNA.
Conclusion: This study shows that HBV DNA and HBeAg do not reflect the extent of hepatitis or hepatic fibrosis in CHB patients of Bangladesh.
Combination of different HBV-related markers with liver biopsy is required for proper diagnosis and management of CHB in Bangladesh.
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