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Hepatitis B test: antibodies to HBeAg (Anti-HBe) in the blood
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Anti-HB e in serum is normally absent.
The appearance of anti-HB e antibodies usually indicates an intensive elimination from the body of the viral hepatitis B virus and a minor infection of the patient. These antibodies appear in an acute period and persist up to 5 years after the infection. In chronic persistent hepatitis, anti-HB e is found in the patient's blood together with HB s Ag. Seroconversion, ie passage HB an e of Ag in the anti-HB an e in chronic active hepatitis, more prognostically favorable, but the same seroconversion in severe tsirroti-cal transformation of the liver does not improve the prognosis.
The blood test for the presence of anti-HB e is used for the following purposes:
- diagnosis of viral hepatitis B:
- the initial stage of the disease;
- acute period of infection;
- early stage of convalescence;
- convalescence;
- late stage of convalescence;
- diagnosis of advanced hepatitis B virus in the recent past;
- diagnosis of chronic persistent viral hepatitis B.
Criteria for the presence of chronic viral hepatitis B:
- detection of HB s Ag in the blood for more than 6 months;
- permanent or periodic detection of hepatitis B DNA in the blood;
- a constant or periodic increase in ALT / AST activity in the blood;
- morphological signs of chronic hepatitis in histological study of liver biopath.
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