Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of the study population.
| Characteristics | All (n = 747) | F0-1 (n = 512) | F2-4 (n = 235) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 36 (29–44) | 34 (28–42) | 39 (31–49) | <0.001 |
| Male gender, n (%) | 487 (65.2%) | 322 (62.9%) | 165 (70.2%) | 0.051 |
| HBeAg positive, n (%) | 503 (67.3%) | 343 (67.0%) | 160 (68.1%) | 0.767 |
| HBV DNA (log10 copies/ml) | 6.6 (4.2–7.6) | 6.5 (3.9–7.4) | 6.6 (4.3–7.7) | 0.875 |
| ALT (IU/L) | 42 (28–62) | 41 (27–60) | 44 (30–71) | 0.067 |
| AST (IU/L) | 29 (22–39) | 27 (22–36) | 31 (24–46) | <0.001 |
| GGT (IU/L) | 24 (15–44) | 18 (13–33) | 42 (25–70) | <0.001 |
| Platelet count (109/L) | 177 (159–215) | 194 (170–242) | 145 (136–168) | <0.001 |
| Prothrombin time (%) | 88 (82–96) | 92 (86–99) | 81 (73–88) | <0.001 |
| APRI | 0.40 (0.28–0.61) | 0.34 (0.24–0.57) | 0.53 (0.33–0.70) | <0.001 |
| FIB-4 | 0.82 (0.61–1.19) | 0.77 (0.59–1.15) | 0.94 (0.66–1.27) | <0.001 |
| METAVIR Inflammation stage | ||||
| A0 | 114 (15.3%) | 80 (15.6%) | 34 (14.5%) | 0.683 |
| A1 | 349 (46.7%) | 246 (48.0%) | 103 (43.8%) | 0.283 |
| A2 | 186 (24.9%) | 117 (22.9%) | 69 (29.4%) | 0.056 |
| A3 | 98 (13.1%) | 69 (13.5%) | 29 (12.3%) | 0.669 |
| METAVIR fibrosis stage | ||||
| F0 | 74 (9.9%) | 74 (9.9%) | 0 | |
| F1 | 438 (58.6%) | 438 (58.6%) | 0 | |
| F2 | 106 (14.2%) | 0 | 106 (14.2%) | |
| F3 | 54 (7.2%) | 0 | 54 (7.2%) | |
| F4 | 75 (10.1%) | 0 | 75 (10.1%) | |
ALT, alanine transaminase; AST, aspartate transaminase; GGT, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase; APRI, AST-to-platelet ratio index; FIB-4, fibrosis index based on the 4 factors; F0-1, non-advanced fibrosis; F2-4, advanced fibrosis.