This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Tenofovir related to HBsAg clearance in HIV/HBV coinfected patients
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Patients with HIV and hepatitis B virus coinfection, who were positive for the hepatitis B e antigen, had a significant decrease in hepatitis B surface antigen when receiving tenofovir therapy, researchers from the Netherlands reported.
“Clearance of hepatitis B virus in these coinfected patients could be of vital importance for their long-term prognosis,” the researchers wrote. “Knowledge of the kinetics of serum hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and its predictive value during long-term potent suppression by tenofovir in HIV/hepatitis B virus-coinfected patients is limited but may help to identify patients who are likely to clear HBsAg.”
The study included 104 coinfected patients who were receiving tenofovir (Viread, Gilead). The patients had been HBsAg-positive for at least 6 months. The patients underwent laboratory testing for serum alanine aminotransferase levels, CD4 counts HBsAg levels and hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) and its antibody.
During 6 years of tenofovir treatment, patients with HBeAg experienced a decline of 2.2 log IU/mL in HBsAg. Patients without HBeAg only demonstrated a decline of 0.6 log IU/mL HBsAg. Declines in HBsAg at 6 months and 12 months also correlated with CD4 count for those with HBeAg.
Five patients with HBeAg and three patients without HBeAg cleared HBsAg. Among those without HBeAg, those who cleared had lower HBsAg levels at baseline. Most patients who cleared HBsAg cleared within the first year.
“We showed that long-term tenofovir therapy leads to a significant decline in HBsAg for HBeAg-positive patients and that HBsAg kinetics early during treatment were highly predictive of HBsAg seroclearance,” the researchers wrote. “The correlation between CD4 count and HBsAg level kinetics during treatment and the high rate of HBsAg seroclearance within the first year underlines the importance of immune restoration in the clearance of HBsAg.”
Disclosure: The researchers report financial relationships with Bristol-Myers Squibb, Gilead, Janssen, Merck, Novartis and Roche.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts