The recent availability of commercial techniques for the quantification of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) has revived interest in this antigen. In recent years, the antigen's potential as a biomarker of the natural history of the disease and its response to antiviral treatment has been assessed. HBsAg serum values reflect the transcriptional activity of cccDNA; reading these values could therefore complement the reading of hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA in the categorization of the various phases of chronic HBV infection. During its natural history, HBsAg values progressively decrease from the immune-tolerant phase to the inactive carrier phase. For patients who are HBeAg-negative, the combined reading of HBV DNA and HBsAg can be useful for differentiating inactive carriers from patients with chronic HBeAg-negative hepatitis, for stratifying the risk of developing hepatocarcinoma and for predicting HBsAg clearance.
Keywords: HBeAg; Hepatitis B; Hepatocarcinoma; Historia natural; Natural history; cccADN; cccDNA.
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