Hepatitis B core-related antigen as a predictive biomarker for recurrence in primary hepatocellular carcinoma: A meta-analysis

Table 3 Subgroup analysis of hepatitis B core-related antigen and primary hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence

Subgroup factor	Divided standard	Pooled HR (95%CI)	Heterogeneity (I²)	Effects model
Sample size	≥ 500	4.18 (1.68-6.53)	65.90%	Random-effect
	< 500	3.26 (1.39-5.66)	76.20%	Random-effect
Follow-up time	≥ 10 years	2.89 (1.38-5.31)	82.30%	Random-effect
	< 10 years	3.27 (1.98-6.79)	51.10%	Random-effect
HBcrAg cut-off value	≥ 4.0 LogU/mL	5.29 (2.17-8.56)	55.80%	Random-effect
	< 4.0 LogU/mL	1.78 (1.25-4.42)	51.68%	Random-effect
Treatment	With NAs	1.98 (1.38-4.98)	71.56%	Random-effect
	Without NAs	3.87 (1.96-8.53)	38.94%	Fixed-effect
Baseline HBeAg	Negative	3.15 (1.88-5.16)	67.75%	Random-effect
	Positive	2.52 (1.21-7.18)	0.00%	Fixed-effect

HBcrAg: Hepatitis B core-related antigen; HBeAg: Hepatitis B e antigen; NA: Nucleos(t)ide analog.