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Subject Area

Community Medicine

Article Type

Original Study

Abstract

Objective The aim was to evaluate the level of human chitinase-3-like protein (YKL-40) in patients with hepatitis C virus infection and observe its level in hepatic fibrosis. Background Hepatic fibrosis results from long-standing liver damage, and it represents a major health care burden worldwide. In recent years, there has been increasing interest in identifying and describing hepatic fibrosis through the use of noninvasive markers. The serum YKL-40 level has been evaluated as a noninvasive marker of various chronic inflammatory and fibrotic liver diseases, including chronic hepatitis C, chronic hepatitis B, and alcoholic liver disease. Participants and methods This study case–control study was carried out in Clinical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, in the period from September 2015 to November 2016. It was conducted on 77 patients with chronic hepatitis C infection and 10 age-matched and sex-matched healthy individuals as a control group. Serum level of YKL-40 was measured for all the participants of the study by enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay technique. Results Mean YKL-40 was lower among control than patient groups (28.0 ± 6.7 and 106.6 ± 38.8, respectively; P < 0.001). Moreover, YKL-40 was lower among mild fibrosis cases than marked fibrosis cases (98.1 ± 41.5 and 111.5 ± 36.6, respectively; P < 0.001). Conclusion There is increased serum level of YKL-40 in patients having liver fibrosis than in control group, and its level increases with the degree of fibrosis.

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