Serum hyaluronic acid and its association with liver stiffness in chronic hepatitis B patients.

Background: Serum hyaluronic acid has an important role in the pathogenesis of liver fibrosis and is one of the most studied extracellular liver matrices. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between serum hyaluronic acid level and liver stiffness in hepatitis B chronic patients. Methods: This was an observational cross-sectional analytic study consisting of 43 samples of chronic hepatitis B patients. Serum hyaluronic acid was measured by the ELISA method. Liver stiffness describing fibrosis was examined using Fibro scan. Results: Among forty-three subject was predominantly by females (65.1%). The average age of the study subjects was 44.023 years old. The median serum hyaluronic acid level of the study subjects was 40.318 ng/mL. The median liver stiffness in the study subjects was 5.8 kPa. There was a significant positive correlation between serum hyaluronic acid levels and liver stiffness in the study subjects with a moderate strength of r = 0.448 (P = 0.003). Conclusion: Serum hyaluronic acid levels associated with liver stiffness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]