HBV pgRNA profiles in Chinese HIV/HBV coinfected patients under pre‐ and posttreatment: a multicentre observational cohort study

Data on hepatitis B virus (HBV) pregenomic (pgRNA) levels in HIV/HBV coinfected patients pre‐ and post‐combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) are limited. This study aimed to evaluate the distribution of HBV pgRNA levels in treatment‐naive coinfected patients and explore the changes that occur after the initiation of cART by examining patients from multicentre cohort studies performed in China. We included HIV/HBV coinfected subjects from the China AIDS Clinical Trial cohorts established from 2008 to 2014. Clinical and serological markers of HIV and HBV infection and biochemical data were acquired at baseline and after 96 and 240–480 weeks of cART. The correlations between HBV pgRNA and HBV DNA levels as well as HBsAg levels were calculated using Spearman's bivariate correlation analysis, and multivariate regression analysis was performed to determine factors associated with undetectable HBV pgRNA levels before cART and HBeAg loss after cART. A total of 132 HIV/HBV coinfected patients were enrolled, and 100 individuals were HBeAg‐negative. A total of 34.4% (32/93) of patients were positive for HBV pgRNA, and the median HBV pgRNA level was 4.92 (IQR: 4.21–6.12) log(10) copies/mL before cART. The median HBV pgRNA level was significantly lower in HBeAg‐negative individuals than in HBeAg‐positive individuals (4.22 (IQR: 2.70–4.84) log(10) copies/mL vs. 5.77 (IQR: 4.63–6.55) log(10) copies/mL, p = 0.002). HBV pgRNA was moderately correlated with HBsAg (r = 0.594, p = 0.001), and positively associated with HBV DNA (r = 0.445, p = 0.011). The factors independently associated with undetectable HBV pgRNA level before cART were HBV DNA (OR: 5.61, 95% CI: 1.50–20.96, p = 0.01) and HBeAg status (OR: 5.95, 95% CI: 1.52–23.25, p = 0.01). A total of 87.5% (28/32) of patients were followed for a median duration of 138 (IQR: 54–240) weeks, and the HBV pgRNA levels became undetectable in seven patients. The 132 patients were observed for 695.5 person‐years, and no HBsAg loss occurred. Thirteen individuals achieved HBeAg loss, four patients had undetectable levels of HBV pgRNA pre‐cART, and the level of six individuals became undetectable during the 48‐week (IQR: 48–264) follow‐up period. HBeAg status was significantly associated with HBV pgRNA level in HIV/HBV coinfected patients pre‐ and post‐cART. Additionally, undetectable HBV pgRNA level may be associated with HBeAg loss after cART.