title: Changes in liver stiffness measurement during antiviral therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis B.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The usefulness of liver stiffness measurement (LSM) for monitoring changes in fibrosis and inflammation in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients receiving antiviral therapy is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in liver stiffness and correlate them with changes in serological markers and histology in CHB patients receiving entecavir.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study included 38 patients with CHB and 24 cirrhotic patients with CHB. All patients received entecavir for over 12 months. Liver stiffness was measured by transient elastography at baseline and after 48wks of therapy. Liver biopsy was performed on 15 patients at baseline and during therapy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 62 treated patients, 51 (82.2%) achieved HBV DNA <50 copies/mL and 43 (69%) achieved alanine aminotransferase (ALT) normalization at 48wks. The median liver stiffness value at baseline was 15.1 kPa (5.6-75.0) and decreased significantly to 8.8kPa (3.0-33.8) after 48wks. A decrease in liver stiffness value during therapy correlated significantly with decreases in albumin (r=-0.357, p=0.004), bilirubin (r=0.342, p=0.007), ALT (r=0.319, p=0.012), and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (r=0.353, p=0.005) concentrations. Decreases in liver stiffness values correlated significantly with improvement in necroinflammatory scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We suggest that LSM can reflect the changes of necroinflammation in patients with chronic hepatitis B receiving antiviral therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, South Korea.
authors.forename: Sun Gyo
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: Sung Won
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Yoon Chul
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Su Jin
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Jeon
authors.forename: Myoung Hee
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Young Ju
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Soon Sun
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Young Bae
authors.initials: YB
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Jae Yeon
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Seok
authors.forename: Jae Youn
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Cheong
authors.forename: Jin Hong
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases / Q000097:blood; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques; D005260:Female; D006147:Guanine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; C413685:entecavir; D006147:Guanine; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases; D000410:Alanine Transaminase