Lee IC, et al. - Researchers sought to report on the long-term incidence and factors associated with HBsAg loss in HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients receiving peginterferon. They recognized a continued increase in HBsAg loss rate after peginterferon treatment in HBeAg-negative CHB patients with sustained off-treatment virological response (SVR). Factors associated with long-term HBsAg loss included age, baseline HBsAg levels, on-treatment HBsAg decline and achieving SVR.

Methods

• They retrospectively analyzed 233 HBeAg-negative CHB patients who completed 48 weeks of peginterferon treatment from three medical centers in Taiwan from 2004 to 2016.

Results

• Twenty seven cases achieved HBsAg loss during a median follow-up of 7.4 years.
• At 3, 5, 10 years after peginterferon treatment, the cumulative incidences of HBsAg loss and HBsAg seroconversion were 4.7%, 9.4%, 14.2%, and 3.5%, 6.4%, 12.5%, respectively, in overall population, and 15.9%, 29.1%, 37.3%, and 13.1%, 19%, 30.6%, respectively, in patients achieving sustained off-treatment virological response (SVR).
• Multivariate analysis suggested that age (<35 years; hazard ratio (HR)=3.742, p=0.007), baseline HBsAg levels (<1,250 IU/ml; HR=4.849, p=0.002), HBsAg decline at week 24 (≥1 log; HR=5.660, p=0.002) and achieving SVR (HR=8.546, p=0.006) were predictors of HBsAg loss.
• Among patients with either younger age or lower HBsAg at baseline, the HBsAg loss rates were higher than 30% in 5 years after achieving SVR.