Ischemic colitis during interferon-alpha treatment for chronic active hepatitis C.
Between 1991 and 1994, at Hoshigaoka Koseinenkin Hospital, we treated 280 patients with chronic hepatitis C with interferon (IFN), and ischemic colitis occurred in two patients (0.7%) during the treatment. Melena appeared in case 1 in the 2nd month after the initiation of IFN-alpha treatment, and in case 2 in the 6th month. In both patients, longitudinal ulcerations in the descending colon were revealed by urgent colonoscopy, and these resolved within 2 weeks after discontinuation of the IFN treatment. It appears that ischemic colitis was associated with the IFN treatment, suggesting that attention should be paid to this possible complication.
Tada
H
H
Division of Gastroenterology, Hoshigaoka Koseinenkin Hospital, Osaka, Japan.
Saitoh
S
S
Nakagawa
Y
Y
Hirana
H
H
Morimoto
M
M
Shima
T
T
Shimamoto
K
K
Okanoue
T
T
Kashima
K
K
D000368:Aged; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017091:Colitis, Ischemic / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D003106:Colon / Q000473:pathology; D003113:Colonoscopy; D005260:Female; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000628:therapy*; D006521:Hepatitis, Chronic / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D008551:Melena / Q000209:etiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D011994:Recombinant Proteins
D000998:Antiviral Agents; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D011994:Recombinant Proteins