Abstract
PURPOSE: Early prediction of HBsAg seroclearance prior to the application of Peg-IFN-based therapy has important clinical implications. This study aims to construct a predictive model with baseline parameters for HBsAg seroclearance after Peg-IFN-based therapy in virally suppressed patients with HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B (CHB). PATIENTS AND METHODS: From January 1, 2018 to May 1, 2023, we retrospectively enrolled 377 nucleos(t)ide analogue-suppressed patients with HBeAg-negative CHB who received a 48-week Peg-IFN-based therapy from 10 centers in China. A multivariate cox regression model was developed for predicting HBsAg seroclearance in a development cohort with 229 patients recruited from 5 centers, then validated in an independent validation cohort with 148 patients recruited from another 5 centers. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT06196632. RESULTS: In the development and validation cohort, 17.9% (41/229) and 20.27% (30/148) of patients achieved HBsAg seroclearance, respectively. The best performing model was constructed by age (HR 0.962, 95% CI 0.928-0.997), baseline HBsAg (HR 0.998, 95% CI 0.997-0.999) and alanine aminotransferase (HR 1.008, 95% CI 1.003-1.012). It showed good predictive performance in predicting HBsAg seroclearance in both the development [area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) 0.842] and validation cohort (AUC 0.852). Using cut-off points of -2.7 and -1.3, it can identify HBeAg-negative CHB patients with high, intermediate and low incidence rate of HBsAg seroclearance. CONCLUSION: A model was constructed with baseline parameters for predicting HBsAg seroclearance after Peg-IFN-based therapy in virally suppressed patients with HBeAg-negative CHB. It showed good predictive value and can provide guidance for the clinical application of Peg-IFN-based therapy.