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Background and purpose: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a major global health problem. The prevalence of HBV infection varies throughout regions of the world. More than 350 million people live with chronic HBV infection and many different clinical symptoms are associated with it. Long-term complications of HBV infection lead to cirrhosis of the liver and hepatocellular carcinoma. Consequently, 0.5-1.2 million death occurs every year. However, early diagnosis and appropriate treatment could reduce such complications. This study intended to investigate the correlation of serum concentrations of HBV-DNA and HBeAg with liver enzymes. Materials and methods: In this cross-sectional study, serum samples of 146 chronic hepatitis B patients were studied. They referred to RaziTeaching Hospital, Qaemshahr, from 2007 to 2009. The subjects were assessed regarding HBV-DNA, HBeAg and ALT enzymes. The patients’ serum was extracted and Real Time PCR test was performed using HBV RG Kit (Nov in Gene). Afterwards, the patients’ medical records were studied and the data was analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficient and t-test in SPSS. Results: From the total of 146 patients, 94 were found negative HBeAg and 52 were HBeAg positive. No correlation was seen between HBV-DNA level and AST enzyme, while there was a significant relationship between HBV-DNA level and ALT enzyme. Conclusion: ALT enzyme is a reliable indicator for severity of liver involvement even in negative HBeAg stages and hidden period of the disease. Hence, the serum levels of HBV-DNA and ALT should be measured in such individuals before developing liver cirrhosis and thereby starting immediate antiviral therapy.

Keywords: Hepatitis, Chronic Hepatitis B, HBeAg, Liver Enzymes.

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