Hepatitis B virus seropositivity is not associated with increased risk of carotid atherosclerosis in Taiwanese

Abstract

Background: Chronic infection has been proposed to increase the risk of atherosclerosis in several experimental and epidemiological studies. However, the relationship of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and atherosclerosis remains controversial. We conducted this cross-sectional study to evaluate the association of carotid atherosclerosis with hepatitis B seropositivity.

Methods and results: In this cross-sectional study, we collected data from subjects undergoing health examination, including B-mode carotid ultrasonography, hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) status and assessment of traditional cardiovascular risk factors, at our institutes in Taiwan between 2002 and 2003. Cases with chronic hepatitis C had been excluded. Of the 508 eligible subjects, 87 (17.1%) were positive for HBsAg and only six of them were positive for HBeAg. Compared with HBsAg negative subjects, the ORs (and 95% CIs) for the subjects with chronic hepatitis B to have carotid atherosclerosis were 1.24 (0.73-2.10) indexed by the presence of carotid atherosclerotic plaque (Intima-media thickness, IMT>or=1.3mm), 0.74 (0.38-1.42) by maximal common carotid artery IMT>or=75th percentile, and 1.09 (0.62-1.90) by extracranial carotid artery atherosclerotic score>or=2, with the use of multivariate logistic regression analyses.

Conclusion: Hepatitis B virus seropositivity was not associated with an increased severity of carotid atherosclerosis in Taiwanese.