Association between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease status changes and antiviral efficacy in chronic hepatitis B

Abstract Background & Aims: Data on the dynamic changes in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) during antiviral therapy are scarce. To investigate the evolution of concurrent NAFLD in CHB patients treated with nucleos(t)ide analogues (NAs) and its influence on antiviral efficacy. Methods: We enrolled 164 HBeAg-positive CHB patients from a randomized controlled trial who were treated with NAs for 104 weeks and underwent paired liver biopsies. Histological evaluation was performed at baseline and week 104. The patients were divided into four groups according to NAFLD status changes. Results: From baseline to week 104, the overall percentage of CHB patients with concurrent NAFLD increased from 17.1% to 26.2% (P = 0.044). Among them, seven of 28 patients (25.0%) with NAFLD at baseline showed NAFLD remission at week 104, while 22 of 136 patients (16.2%) without NAFLD at baseline developed new-onset NAFLD. In subgroup analyses, the new-onset and sustained NAFLD groups showed significantly lower rates of biochemical response (BR) at week 104 as compared to the sustained non-NAFLD group (77.3% and 55% vs. 93.9%, respectively; all P < 0.05), as well as fibrosis improvement (31.8% and 45.0% vs. 69.3%, respectively; all P < 0.05). NAFLD status changes did not influence the virological response, HBeAg seroconversion, and necroinflammation improvement (all P > 0.05). Conclusions: In HBeAg-positive CHB patients receiving NAs therapy, new-onset and sustained NAFLD may counteract the benefits of antiviral therapy, reducing the rate of BR and fibrosis improvement.