title: Comparative risk of liver-related mortality from chronic hepatitis B versus chronic hepatitis C virus infection.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  It is not known whether chronic hepatitis B (CH-B) or chronic hepatitis C (CH-C) carries a greater risk of liver-related mortality. This study compared rates of liver-related mortality between these 2 groups in the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS).
  
  
  METHODS
  Six hundred eighty men with CH-B (n = 337) or CH-C (n = 343) at study entry into the MACS were prospectively followed to death, last follow-up visit, or 30 March 2010, whichever came first. Four hundred seventy-two (69.4%) of these men were infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Causes of death were obtained from death registry matching and death certificates. Liver-related and all-cause mortality rates (MRs) were compared between groups using Poisson regression and adjusted for potential confounders and competing risks.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In 6728 person-years (PYs) of follow-up, there were 293 deaths from all causes (43.5 per 1000 PYs), of which 51 were liver-related (7.6 per 1000 PYs). The all-cause MR was similar between those with CH-B and CH-C; however, the liver-related MR was significantly higher in those with CH-B (9.6 per 1000 PYs; 95% confidence interval [CI], 6.9-13.2) than those with CH-C (5.0 per 1000 PYs; 95% CI, 3.0-8.4). In the HIV-infected subgroup, which had 46 (90.2%) of the liver-related deaths, the liver-related MR remained higher from CH-B after adjusting for potential confounders (incidence rate ratio, 2.2; P = .03) and competing risks (subhazard rate ratio, 2.4; P = .02). Furthermore, among HIV-infected subjects, CD4 cell counts <200 cells/mm(3) were associated with a 16.2-fold (95% CI, 6.1-42.8) increased risk of liver-related death compared with CD4 cell counts >350 cell/mm(3).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Chronic hepatitis B carries a higher risk of death from liver disease than does CH-C, especially in HIV-infected men with greater immunosuppression.
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, 21287, USA. ofalade1@jhmi.edu
authors.forename: Oluwaseun
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Falade-Nwulia
authors.forename: Eric C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Seaberg
authors.forename: Charles R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Rinaldo
authors.forename: Sheila
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Badri
authors.forename: Mallory
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Witt
authors.forename: Chloe L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Thio
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000302:isolation & purification; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000401:mortality* / Q000821:virology*; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000401:mortality* / Q000821:virology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016012:Poisson Distribution; D011446:Prospective Studies; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology