Clinical importance of assessment of HBsAg/IgM complexes in chronic hepatitis B.

In serum of patients with chronic hepatitis B (HB) in the stage of active viral replication HBsAg/IgM complexes were detected. Using a commercial kit AU-IGM-K Sorin Biomedica HBsAg/IgM complexes in 136 patients with chronic HB and cirrhosis of the liver were examined, incl. 89 men, 42 women and 5 children, mean age 48 +/- 17 years. With regard to the results of the serological examination for HB virus (HBV) markers the results in 54 patients with positive HBeAg and HBsAg in serum (group 1) were compared with 68 patients with positive HBsAg only (group 2) and with 14 patients with positive antibodies against HBV or unrelated to HBV (group 3). The mean positivity index of HBsAg/IgM complexes in group 1, 2 and 3 was 9.89, 1.85 and 0.50, respectively. The results suggest a significant predominance of HBsAg/IgM complexes in patients during the stage of active viral replication with positive HBeAg in serum, as compared with patients without HBeAg (p = 0.001) and the control group (p = 0.001). A similar significant difference between groups was found as regards to ALT and AST activities. We conclude that in patients with chronic HBeAg positive hepatitis and a moderately elevated transaminase activity usually also HBsAg/IgM complexes, which are closely correlated with HBeAg, are positive.