Lamivudine treatment-related morphological changes of esophageal varices in patients with liver cirrhosis

Aim: Many studies have reported the therapeutic effects of lamivudine on cirrhotic patients with hepatitis B; however, no study has investigated the morphological changes of esophageal varices after lamivudine treatment. Method: The morphological changes of esophageal varices in patients with cirrhosis were retrospectively compared between 12 patients treated with lamivudine and six historical untreated patients. Results: In the treated group, the HBV DNA and hyaluronic acid (HA) levels in the serum were significantly lower than those in the untreated group (P = 0.013 and P = 0.009, respectively) at the end of follow-up, with a significant improvement in the Child-Pugh-Turcotte score (P = 0.022). In the treated group, the disappearance or reduction of esophageal varices was observed in six (50%) of the 12 patients. In three (25%) of the 12 patients, esophageal varices worsened. In the remaining three patients (25%), there were no changes in esophageal varices. In the untreated group, all patients showed the worsening of esophageal varices during the follow-up period, with a significant difference between this group and the treated group (P = 0.009). The serum HA level decreased in the nine treated patients without worsening of esophageal varices. However, in the three patients with worsening, the HA level significantly increased. Conclusions: Lamivudine treatment for patients with cirrhosis improves not only liver function but also esophageal varices.