Hepatitis B Core-Related Antigen Point-of-Care Tests as a Risk Stratification Tool for Treatment Eligibility: Experience From Kenya
Downs LO., Okanda D., Chirro O., Zaharani M., Safari B., Aliyan N., Andersson MI., Tanaka Y., Etyang AO., Shimakawa Y., Githinji G., Matthews PC.
We undertook a point-of-care test for hepatitis B core-related antigen in adults with hepatitis B virus in Kilifi, Kenya. A positive test identified all individuals with a hepatitis B viral load >200 000 IU/mL and who were hepatitis B e antigen positive. It also correlated with a higher alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level (P = .03), raised aspartate transaminase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI) (P < .001), and higher elastography scores (P = .03).