Table 1.
Baseline characteristics and complications of patients
| Characteristic | No. of patients (N = 171) | Methylprednisolone (N = 83) | Control (N = 88) | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Malea | 152 (88.9%) | 74 (8.4%) | 78 (88.6%) | 0.914 |
| Age (years) | 45.2 ± 12.3 | 43.7 ± 12.7 | 46.6 ± 11.8 | 0.121 |
| Cirrhosisa | 139 (81.3%) | 67 (80.7%) | 72 (81.8%) | 0.854 |
| Time from onsetd to admission (days)b | 20 (10–30) | 16 (10–21) | 20 (13–30) | 0.083 |
| MELD score | 23.3 ± 4.7 | 22.8 ± 4.0 | 23.9 ± 5.2 | 0.132 |
| Lg HBV DNA (IU/ml) | 4.8 ± 1.9 | 4.9 ± 2.0 | 4.6 ± 1.8 | 0.383 |
| HBV DNAa | ||||
| Positive | 150 (87.7%) | 70 (84.3%) | 80 (90.9%) | 0.191 |
| Negative | 21 (12.3%) | 13 (15.7%) | 8 (9.1%) | 0.191 |
| HBeAga | ||||
| Positive | 90 (52.6%) | 43 (51.8%) | 47 (53.4%) | 0.834 |
| Negative | 81 (47.4%) | 40 (48.2%) | 41 (46.6%) | 0.834 |
| HBsAgb | 2582.0 (401.0–6012.0) | 2582.0 (422.8–5884.0) | 2613.0 (325.4–6197.3) | 0.843 |
| No medication with NAs when the disease onseta | 127 (74.3%) | 58 (69.9%) | 69 (78.4%) | 0.202 |
| Never used before | 89 (52.0%) | 38 (45.8%) | 51 (58.0%) | |
| Drug withdrawal | 38 (22.2%) | 20 (24.1%) | 18 (20.5%) | |
| ADV | 6 (3.5%) | 2 (2.4%) | 4 (4.5%) | |
| ETV | 16 (9.4%) | 12 (14.5%) | 4 (4.5%) | |
| LAM | 10 (5.8%) | 4 (4.8%) | 6 (6.8%) | |
| ETV+ADV | 3 (1.8%) | 1 (1.2%) | 2 (2.3%) | |
| LAM+ADV | 3 (1.8%) | 1 (1.2%) | 2 (2.3%) | |
| Medication with NAs when the disease onseta | 44 (25.7%) | 25 (30.1%) | 19 (21.6%) | 0.202 |
| LAM | 7 (4.1%) | 4 (4.8%) | 3 (3.4%) | |
| LAM+TDF | 1 (0.6%) | 1 (1.2%) | 0 | |
| LAM+ADV | 7 (4.1%) | 3 (3.6%) | 4 (4.5%) | |
| ETV | 26 (15.2%) | 16 (19.3%) | 10 (11.4%) | |
| ADV | 2 (1.2%) | 0 | 2 (2.3%) | |
| LdT | 1 (0.6%) | 1 (1.2%) | 0 | |
| NAs therapy after enrollmenta | 171 (100%) | 83 (100%) | 88 (100%) | 0.101 |
| LAM | 16 (9.4%) | 6 (7.2%) | 10 (11.4%) | |
| LAM+ADV | 7 (4.1%) | 5 (6.0%) | 2 (2.3%) | |
| LAM+TDF | 1 (0.6%) | 1 (1.2%) | 0 | |
| ETV | 142 (83.0%) | 69 (83.1%) | 73 (83.0%) | |
| ETV+ADV | 2 (1.2%) | 0 | 2 (2.3%) | |
| ADV | 1 (0.6%) | 0 | 1 (1.1%) | |
| LdT | 2 (1.2%) | 2 (2.4%) | 0 | |
| ALT (U/L)b | 307.0 (117.2–573.6) | 347.0 (131.7–685.9) | 276.3 (106.8–514.1) | 0.080 |
| AST (U/L)b | 214.0 (156.8–485.0) | 291.3 (156.8–515.0) | 184.4 (155.5–306.1) | 0.054 |
| Bilirubin (μmol/L) | 353.9 ± 138.4 | 335.3 ± 133.8 | 371.4 ± 141.2 | 0.089 |
| Albumin (g/L) | 31.0 ± 4.1 | 31.4 ± 3.6 | 30.7 ± 4.5 | 0.257 |
| Cholinesterase (IU/L) | 3215.8 ± 1165.5 | 3262.0 ± 1063.3 | 3172.3 ± 1258.9 | 0.616 |
| AFP (ng/ml)b | 80.0 (33.1–180.0) | 86.0 (45.5–240.0) | 65.7 (21.7–132.8) | 0.150 |
| Cholesterol (mmol/L) | 2.3 ± 0.8 | 2.4 ± 0.9 | 2.2 ± 0.7 | 0.059 |
| Blood urea nitrogen (mmol/L) b | 4.0 (3.2–6.1) | 4.6 (3.1–6.1) | 4.3 (3.5–6.3) | 0.054 |
| Creatinine (μmol/L)b | 66.2 (56.8–81.0) | 64.4 (55.4–76.6) | 68.0 (58.1–84.5) | 0.123 |
| NH3 (μg/dl) | 86.5 ± 45.2 | 89.2 ± 44.9 | 84.0 ± 45.7 | 0.449 |
| Triglyceride (mmol/L)b | 0.9 (0.6–1.5) | 0.8 (0.5–1.7) | 0.9 (0.6–1.4) | 0.936 |
| White blood cell (× 109/L) | 7.3 ± 3.5 | 7.3 ± 3.4 | 7.3 ± 3.6 | 0.960 |
| Lymphocyte percentage | 20.7 ± 8.5 | 20.1 ± 8.1 | 21.3 ± 8.9 | 0.372 |
| Monocyte percentage | 9.5 ± 3.6 | 9.0 ± 3.5 | 9.8 ± 3.7 | 0.147 |
| Lymphocyte/monocyte ratiob | 2.2 (1.5–3.0) | 2.2 (1.5–3.0) | 2.1 (1.5–2.9) | 0.502 |
| Neutrophil percentage | 68.6 ± 10.6 | 69.1 ± 9.6 | 68.1 ± .11.4 | 0.547 |
| Procalcitonin (μg/L)b | 0.6 (0.4–0.9) | 0.6 (0.5–1.0) | 0.6 (0.3–0.8) | 0.197 |
| PT (s)b | 22.9 (20.2–27.9) | 22.9 (19.2–22.8) | 22.9 (20.7–27.6) | 0.877 |
| PTA (%) | 35.9 ± 9.2 | 36.0 ± .10.3 | 35.8 ± 8.1 | 0.865 |
| INRa | 2.9 (1.7–2.3) | 2.1 (1.6–2.6) | 2.0 (1.7–2.2) | 0.580 |
| Red blood cell (× 1012/L) | 3.9 ± 0.8 | 4.0 ± 0.8 | 3.8 ± 0.9 | 0.070 |
| Hemoglobin (g/L) | 124.2 ± 21.1 | 127.6 ± 18.9 | 121.5 ± 22.3 | 0.056 |
| Platelet (×109/L) | 105.2 ± 51.6 | 113.0 ± 45.3 | 97.9 ± 56.1 | 0.055 |
| Ascitesa | 103 (60.2%) | 45 (54.2%) | 58 (65.9%) | 0.118 |
| Infectionsa | 92 (53.8%) | 47 (56.6%) | 45 (51.1%) | 0.472 |
| Electrolyte disturbancea | 17 (9.9%) | 5 (6.0%) | 12 (13.6%) | 0.096 |
| Encephalopathya | 21 (12.3%) | 12 (14.5%) | 9 (10.2%) | 0.400 |
| Hypoalbuminemiaa | 35 (20.5%) | 16 (19.3%) | 19 (21.6%) | 0.708 |
| Hepatorenal syndromea | 5 (2.9%) | 1 (1.2%) | 4 (4.5%) | 0.369 |
| Pleural effusiona | 7 (4.1%) | 3 (3.6%) | 4 (4.5%) | 1.000 |
| Hyperthyroidisma | 1 (0.6%) | 1 (1.2%) | 0 | 0.485 |
| Peptic ulcera | 2 (1.2%) | 1 (1.2%) | 1 (1.1%) | 1.000 |
| Artificial liver support after enrollmentc | – | 87.98 | 84.13 | 0.582 |
| Artificial centesis after enrollmentc | – | 79.55 | 92.08 | 0.090 |
| The time of antibiotic use after enrollmentc | – | 91.72 | 80.60 | 0.141 |
aData expressed with number of cases
bData expressed as median (range)
cDate expressed with mean rank
dOnset: appearance of nausea, poor appetite, jaundice, or gastrointestinal hemorrhage