Nevertheless, HBsAg-based response-guided therapy is a valuable tool for optimization of PEG-IFN therapy, and can help with achieving higher response rates for every therapy course completed. Early LY2606368 order identification of nonresponders

may help make this treatment modality more acceptable to patients, physicians, and healthcare policy makers and possibly increase the cost-effectiveness of PEG-IFN in HBeAg-positive CHB. Limitations of the current study are that a subset of patients was treated with a combination of PEG-IFN + LAM. We have therefore performed separate analyses in patients treated with PEG-IFN alone, as shown in Table 4. We enrolled a majority of patients with HBV genotypes B and C compared with A and D, and further confirmation of our findings may therefore be required in the latter groups. Since only a limited group of patients achieved HBsAg loss, further studies may be required to confirm AZD0530 the high NPVs observed for this endpoint, particularly for patients with HBV genotypes

B and D. Previous studies have shown that patients with HBV genotype D respond poorly to PEG-IFN therapy[9] and PEG-IFN may not be an optimal choice for some of these patients given the low rate of response we observed in the current cohort. In conclusion, the current study shows that HBsAg levels can be confidently used to guide therapy decisions in HBeAg-positive patients treated with PEG-IFN. Discontinuation of PEG-IFN treatment is indicated in all patients with HBsAg levels >20,000 IU/mL after 24 weeks of PEG-IFN therapy. Study coordination and design, data collection, data analysis, writing of article, approval of final version: M.S., H.L.Y.C., B.E.H., H.L.A.J. Data collection, critical review of the article, approval of final version: T.P., J.D.J., S.Z., E.G., Y.F.L., Q.X., E.J.H. Statistical analysis, critical review of the article, approval of final version: B.E.H. The authors had complete access to all data, and take

responsibility for its integrity and the accuracy of the analysis. Additional Supporting Information may be found in the online version of this article. “
“Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection this website is the major cause of chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) worldwide, especially in the Asia–Pacific region. Several hepatitis B viral factors predictive of clinical outcomes in HBV carriers have been identified. The Risk Evaluation of Viral Load Elevation and Associated Liver Disease/Cancer-HBV (REVEAL-HBV) study from Taiwan illustrated the strong association between HBV-DNA level at study entry and risk of HCC over time. In this community-based cohort study, male gender, older age, high serum alanine aminotransferase level, positive hepatitis B e antigen, higher HBV-DNA level, HBV genotype C infection, and core promoter mutation are independently associated with a higher risk of HCC.