Correlation between hepatitis B virus DNA levels and HBeAg quantity in patients under 20 years old with chronic hepatitis B virus infection

AIM: To investigate the relationshipt between hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA contents and HBeAg quantity in HBV-infected patients under 20 years old. METHODS: The serum HBV DNA contents and HBeAg quantity in 339 patients (age 1-20) with chronic HBV infection were examined by real time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (FQ-PCR) and time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay (TRFIA) respectively, and the level of anine aminotransferase (ALT) was detected by rate method. RESULTS: The patients with HBV DNA contents more than 10⁵ copies/mL, HBeAg quantity more than 0.3 NCU/mL, and normal ALT level accounted for 92.3% of the total cases. Positive correlation (r = 0.769, P < 0.001) and linear regression (b = 0.32, R² = 0.59, P < 0.001) existed between HBV DNA contents (on a log scale) and HBeAg quantity in the patients under 20 years old. CONCLUSION: Serum HBV DNA contents and HBeAg quantity are changed simultaneously in HBV-infected patients under 20 years old, except in quite a few cases, so combined examination of HBV DNA and HBeAg may help to evaluate the state of chronic HBV infection more exactly.