title: [The relationship between serum HBsAg levels and liver inflammation and fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the relation of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) level with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and liver inflammation and fibrosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 301 patients who diagnosed CHB and underwent liver biopsy were enrolled into the study. Meantimes, the biochemical markers, ferritin (FERR), serum HBsAg and HBV DNA quantitation were detected. The relation between HBsAg level and liver pathology were determined by spearman rank correlation analysis. The receiver operating characteristic curve was used to evaluate the accuracy of HBsAg level for liver inflammation and fibrosis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The body mass index (BMI), age, gender, genotype and family history had no effective on liver inflammation and fibrosis (P < 0.05). With the progressing of inflammation and fibrosis, the serum AST and ALT raise obviously (chi2 = 71.193, 96.344, 47.847, 63.981; P = 0.000, 0.000, 0.000, 0.000). When fibrosis reached to S4, the level of HBV DNA decreased obviously (chi2 = 33. 322; P = 0.000). With the aggravation of inflammation and fibrosis, the serum HBsAg gradually descended (chi2 = 68.173,15.719; P = 0.000, 0.000). The areas under operating characteristics curves of HBsAg predicted < or = G3 and < or = S3 were 0.732 and 0.793, and the specificity were 0.778, 0.891, and sensitivity were 0.685, and 0.633, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The level of HBsAg of Chinese CHB patients descended gradually with the aggravation of liver inflammation and fibrosis. The serum HBsAg had a higher specificity to predict < or = G3 and < or = S3 of CHB patients. But there had superiority of predicting fibrosis than inflammation.
authors.affiliation: Affiliated Hospital of Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310015, China.
authors.forename: Li-Hua
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.forename: Yan-Ming
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Guo-Qiang
authors.initials: GQ
authors.lastname: Lou
authors.forename: Xiu-Li
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Jian-Chun
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Meng-Fei
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Yun-Hao
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Xun
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000097:blood*; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000209:etiology*; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000209:etiology*; D008297:Male
chemical_list: D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens