Evaluation of telbivudine’s efficacy for treating HBeAg-positive chronic B hepatitis patients and identification of its predictive factors by logistic regression analysis

ObjectiveTo evaluate the efficacy of a 36-month telbivudine (LdT) treatment regimen in patients with hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and to explore the predictive factors of LdT-induced HBeAg seroconversion using logistic regression analysis. MethodsA total of 58 HBeAg-positive CHB patients treated with LdT continuously for 36 months were analyzed to determine any potential correlations between sex, age, baseline levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), HBV DNA load, HBeAg titer, or hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) titer and end-of-treatment rates of ALT normalization, undetectable HBV DNA, HBeAg clearance, or HBeAg seroconversion. The factors capable of predicting HBeAg seroconversion were identified by logistic regression analysis. ResultsAfter 36 months of LdT treatment, the ALT normalization rate was 84.48%, the undetectable HBV DNA rate was 70.69%, the HBeAg clearance rate was 50.0%, and the HBeAg seroconversion rate was 43.1%. The undetectable HBV DNA rate was significantly correlated to baseline HBV DNA load (P＜0.05). The HBeAg clearance rate was significantly correlated to baseline HBeAg titers and HBV DNA load (P＜0.05). The HBeAg seroconversion rate was significantly correlated to baseline ALT, HBeAg titers, and HBV DNA load (P＜0.05). However, all of these indicators were unrelated to sex, age, or baseline HBsAg titers (P＞0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that only the patients with lower baseline HBeAg titer were more likely to develop HBeAg seroconversion. ConclusionContinuous LdT treatment over 36 months can effectively improve liver function, suppress HBV replication, and increase the HBeAg seroconversion rate. Baseline HBeAg titer may be a useful predictive factor of the HBeAg seroconversion rate in HBeAg-positive CHB patients who are treated with LdT.