Objective: This study sought to use a meta-analysis approach to comprehensively evaluate correlations between the human leukocyte antigen-DR beta 1 (HLA-DRB1)*03 allele and chronic hepatitis B (CHB) in the Han Chinese population.
Methods: The China Biomedical Literature database (CBMdisc), the Chongqing VIP database (VIP), and the PubMed database were searched. Using the inclusion and exclusion criteria of this study, all relevant case-control studies retrieved in these searches that satisfied the conditions of this investigation were collected. Review Manager (RevMan) 5.2 software was used to conduct a meta-analysis on the results of these studies.
Results: There were 9 publications that satisfied the inclusion criteria. These publications included a total of 970 cases in the CHB group and 1185 cases in the normal control group. Egger's test revealed no significant publication bias. A comprehensive analysis indicated that the pooled odds ratio (OR) value was 1.94 with a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1.23-3.06 (Z=2.84, p=0.004); these findings suggested that in the Han Chinese population, the HLA-DRB1*03 allele is a susceptibility allele related to the occurrence of CHB.
Conclusion: There is a statistically significant correlation between the HLA-DRB1*03 allele and the occurrence of CHB in the Han Chinese population, and the HLA-DRB1*03 allele may be a susceptibility allele for this disease.