Liver steatosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B infection: host and viral risk factors

Abstract

Steatosis is a relatively common finding in CHB and metabolic host factors rather than viral factors responsible for the presence of steatosis in these patients.

Clinical and laboratory characteristics associated with dyslipidemia and liver steatosis in chronic HBV carriers

“…Other studies have indicated that patients with chronic HBV infection and LS had signifi cantly higher BMI and higher levels of fasting glucose, triglycerides, and total cholesterol than did those without steatosis 11,13,32,35 . Based on these fi ndings, we can surmise that it is important to closely monitor the BMI, insulin resistance, and lipid profi le in patients with chronic HBV, as well as in the general population, to prevent the occurrence of LS.…”

“…Biopsy-confi rmed LS has been described in 18%-76% of chronic HBV patients [32][33][34][35][36] . The wide variation in the prevalence of LS in HBV carriers cannot be explained easily, as the patient characteristics do not appear to differ substantially among studies.…”

“…Given the relatively small number of patients with viral load data (n = 64), this fi nding does not necessarily exclude a role for HBV in mediating LS, and further studies that examine a larger cohort are needed to address this question. Some authors have found an association between viral load and the absence of steatosis 11,32 , and an inverse relationship between metabolic syndrome and chronic HBV has been demonstrated 6 . The reason why HBsAg-positive subjects are less prone to developing metabolic syndrome remains unclear.…”

Impact of fatty liver on hepatitis B virus replication and virologic response to tenofovir and entecavir

“…Approximately onethird (13.6-44.4%) of patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection have been reported to have NAFLD (2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8). Despite studies that claim an increase in NAFLD in the presence of active viral replication in patients with chronic HBV infection, there are studies that report suppression of viral replication in NAFLD (9,10). Many epidemiological studies have reported no difference regarding HBV replication between patients with NAFLD and those without NAFLD (3)(4)(5)(6)8,(10)(11)(12)(13).…”

“…Despite studies that claim an increase in NAFLD in the presence of active viral replication in patients with chronic HBV infection, there are studies that report suppression of viral replication in NAFLD (9,10). Many epidemiological studies have reported no difference regarding HBV replication between patients with NAFLD and those without NAFLD (3)(4)(5)(6)8,(10)(11)(12)(13). However, a negative correlation between NAFLD and serum HBV DNA levels has also been reported in a meta-analysis (7).…”