To investigate the association between serum IP-10 and HBsAg levels in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients previously treated with nucleot(s)ide analogs (NAs) followed by combined treatment with an NA and pegylated interferon alpha (PEG-IFNα).

Ninety-nine patients with serum levels of HBsAg <3000 IU/mL and HBV DNA <20 IU/mL who received prior NA treatment were enrolled. Participants were administered either NA monotherapy (NA group) or combination therapy with PEG-IFNα (Add-on group). Laboratory indicators and IP-10 levels were assessed in serial peripheral blood samples collected at 12- and 24-week intervals. The outcome of this study was a loss or >1 log₁₀ IU/mL decline in serum HBsAg.

After 48 weeks of antiviral therapy, none of the 27 NA group patients and 15 of the 72 Add-on group patients achieved HBsAg loss. Baseline serum HBsAg and IP-10 levels were equivalent across both groups. The combination treatment led to a decrease in serum HBsAg levels and an early increase in IP-10 levels. Furthermore, a moderate increase in IP-10 levels at weeks 12 or 24 was correlated with loss and decline of HBsAg in the Add-on group. Receiver operating characteristic curve and regression analyses demonstrated that a moderate increase in serum IP-10 levels at weeks 12 or 24 was predictive of HBsAg loss and decline in the Add-on group (p < 0.05).

An early and moderate increase in the serum IP-10 level was correlated with responses to PEG-IFNα among patients with CHB treated with NAs.

The benefits and harms of methylprednisolone treatment in patients with moderate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) remain controversial. In this study, we investigated the effect of methylprednisolone on mortality rate, viral clearance, and hospitalization stay in patients with moderate COVID-19.

This retrospective study included 4827 patients admitted to Wuhan Huoshenshan and Wuhan Guanggu hospitals from February to March 2020 diagnosed with COVID-19 pneumonia. The participants' epidemiological and demographic data, comorbidities, laboratory test results, treatments, outcomes, and vital clinical time points were extracted from electronic medical records. The primary outcome was in-hospital death; secondary outcomes were time from admission to viral clearance and hospital stay. Univariate and multivariate logistic or linear regression analysis were used to assess the roles of methylprednisolone in different outcomes. The propensity score matching (PSM) method was used to control for confounding factors.

A total of 1320 patients were included in this study, of whom 100 received methylprednisolone. Overall, in-hospital mortality was 0.91% (12/1320); the 12 patients who died were all in the methylprednisolone group, though multivariate logistic regression analysis showed methylprednisolone treatment was not a risk factor for in-hospital death in moderate patients before or after adjustment for confounders by PSM. Methylprednisolone treatment was correlated with longer length from admission to viral clearance time and hospital stay before and after adjustment for confounders.

Methylprednisolone therapy was not associated with increased in-hospital mortality but with delayed viral clearance and extended hospital stay in moderate COVID-19 patients.