A comparison of treatment with adefovir and entecavir for chronic hepatitis B in China: The 2-year results of a prospective study

Abstract

Background: The reduction of hepatitis B virus replication to minimal levels is emerging as key therapeutic goal in chronic hepatitis B (CHB).Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate and compare the efficacies of adefovir (ADV) and entecavir (ETV) in CHB.Patients and Methods: In this prospective study, 100 naïve patients were assigned to treatment with ADV (33 HBeAg-positive and 19 HBeAg-negative patients) or ETV (32 HBeAg-positive and 16 HBeAg-negative patients). The primary efficacy outcome was ALT normalization, reduction in HBV DNA, and seroconversion of HBeAg. Second efficacy outcomes included resistance and safety. Comparisons of quantitative and qualitative variables between groups were analyzed by student t-test and chi-square test (or Fisher's exact test), respectively.Results: Among HBeAg-positive patients, ETV was superior to ADV with respect to mean reduction in HBV DNA (-7.5 versus -6.3, respectively, at Month 24, p=0.003) and the percentage of those with HBV DNA