Histological changes in liver biopsies after one year of lamivudine treatment in patients with chronic hepatitis B infection.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to examine the histological changes in liver biopsies induced by 52 weeks of lamivudine therapy in patients with e-antigen positive and e-antigen negative chronic hepatitis B infection.


METHODS
Twenty patients were enrolled into this open-label study. All patients had a liver biopsy within the 4 weeks before starting lamivudine therapy. Lamivudine was given orally at a dose of 100 mg OD for 52 weeks. A second liver biopsy was taken for comparison at the end of week 52. Blinded biopsies were evaluated by a histopathologist and scored according to Knodell's histology activity index (HAI).


RESULTS
Ninety-five percent (19/20) patients had a reduction of their hepatic necroinflammatory HAI score (components 1 through 3) by > or =2 points at the end of 52 weeks of lamivudine therapy compared to their pretreatment values. Not only were improvements in necroinflammatory activity observed, but 7/20 (35%) of patients had improvement in fibrosis. This histologic improvement was independent of the presence or absence of e-antigen.


CONCLUSIONS
Significant improvements in liver histology can be obtained in the majority of patients when they are treated with lamivudine for 1 year.
Suzuki
Y
Y
Division of Gastroenterology, Toranomon Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
Kumada
H
H
Ikeda
K
K
Chayama
K
K
Arase
Y
Y
Saitoh
S
S
Tsubota
A
A
Kobayashi
M
M
Koike
M
M
Ogawa
N
N
Tanikawa
K
K
D000328:Adult; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001706:Biopsy; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation; D019259:Lamivudine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D009336:Necrosis; D015588:Observer Variation; D013997:Time Factors
D000998:Antiviral Agents; D004279:DNA, Viral; D006513:Hepatitis B e Antigens; D019259:Lamivudine