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. 2023 May 22;23(1):115.
doi: 10.1186/s12902-023-01371-w.

Analysis of clinical characteristics of thyroid disorders in patients with chronic hepatitis B treated with pegylated-interferon alpha

Yisi Liu #  1 , Yanhong Zheng #  1 , Xiao Lin  1 , Zhenhuan Cao  2 , Junfeng Lu  1 , Lina Ma  1 , Shan Ren  1 , Sujun Zheng  1 , Zhongjie Hu  1 , Bin Xu #  3 , Xinyue Chen #  4
Affiliations

Analysis of clinical characteristics of thyroid disorders in patients with chronic hepatitis B treated with pegylated-interferon alpha

Yisi Liu et al. BMC Endocr Disord. .

Abstract

Background: Thyroid disorders (TD) is a common complication of pegylated-interferon alpha (Peg-IFNα) therapy. Few studies have investigated the relationship between TD and the efficacy of interferon therapy for chronic hepatitis B (CHB). Therefore, we analyzed the clinical characteristics of TD in patients with CHB treated with Peg-IFNα, and evaluated the correlation between TD and Peg-IFNα treatment efficacy.

Methods: In this retrospective study, the clinical data of 146 patients with CHB receiving Peg-IFNα therapy were collected and analyzed.

Results: During the course of Peg-IFNα therapy, positive conversion of thyroid autoantibodies and TD occurred in 7.3% (85/1158) and 8.8% (105/1187) patients, respectively, and was diagnosed more often in women. The most common thyroid disorder was hyperthyroidism (53.3%), followed by subclinical hypothyroidism (34.3%). We found that thyroid function returned to normal in 78.7% of patients with CHB, and thyroid antibody levels returned to the negative range in approximately 50% of patients after interferon treatment cessation. Only 25% of patients with clinical TD required treatment. Compared with patients with hypothyroidism/subclinical hypothyroidism, patients with hyperthyroidism/subclinical hyperthyroidism showed greater reduction and seroclearance of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) levels.

Conclusions: TD are not an absolute contraindication for interferon therapy; however, patients should be monitored closely during interferon therapy. In pursuit of functional cure, a balance between efficacy and safety must be achieved.

Keywords: Chronic hepatitis B; Functional cure; Interferon alpha; Side effect; Thyroid diseases.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Screening population and enrollment situation
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Factors affecting the efficacy of Peg-IFNα. The OR and 95% CI was plotted for each variable included in the multivariate logistic regression models (sex, female/male; thyroid autoantibody, positive/negative; TD type, clinical or subclinical hyperthyroidism/clinical or subclinical hypothyroidism). CI, confidence interval; OR, odds ratio; Peg-IFNα, pegylated-interferon alpha; TD, thyroid disorder; *p < 0.05; **p < 0.01
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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