The role of serum Wisteria floribunda agglutinin-positive Mac-2 binding protein in the assessment of fibrosis in children with chronic hepatitis C

Background: At present non-invasive fibrosis markers are not available for assessment of liver fibrosis in children with chronic hepatitis C. Methods: Sixty-three children with chronic hepatitis C were included. Changes in Wisteria floribunda agglutinin-positive Mac-2 binding protein (M2BPGi) levels were evaluated in l3 of 27 treatment-naive patients during the observation period of the natural course of disease (median 4, range 3-6 years). Changes during treatment were evaluated in 27 of 36 patients for 4 (2-9) years of post-treatment follow-up. Results: There were significant differences in the levels of M2BPGi between the control group and HCV F0 group (P=0.002) and between the control group and HCV F1 group (P<0.001). Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that to detect stage F1 fibrosis cut off value was 0.95 for M2BPGi with sensitivity 52%, specificity 90%, and area under the curve 0.687. A substantial decrease in M2BPGi levels by treatment was shown from 0.98±0.57 at pre-treatment to 0.42±0.15 at post-treatment (P<0.001) in the 27 treated-patients. Conclusions: Our study shows new findings that M2BPGi may be useful to predict the presence of a mild degree of fibrosis in children with chronic hepatitis C and such a mild fibrosis may be quickly resolved by antiviral therapies.