Correlation between hepatitis B genotypes, 1896 precore mutation, virus loads and liver dysfunction in an Indian population.

Serum HBV DNA level is an accurate measure of the replicative activity of HBV,7 and lower virus loads are associated with mild or no liver disease.8 Studies from southeast Asia show that HBV genotype C is associated with higher virus loads as compared with genotype B.9 Further, HBV loads correlated with the severity of liver disease and histological damage in patients infected by precore mutants.10