Hepatitis C and alcohol.
Chronic alcoholism in patients with chronic hepatitis C appears to cause more severe and rapidly progressive liver disease leading more frequently to cirrhosis of the liver and hepatocellular carcinoma. The primary risk factor for acquiring hepatitis C among alcoholics is injection drug use. However, the epidemiology is not well defined, and other sources of spread must be important. Alcohol intake in excess of 10 g/d has been associated with increased serum hepatitis C viral RNA and aminotransferase levels, the mechanism of which is poorly understood. The histological picture of hepatitis C in patients with chronic alcoholism is typically indistinguishable from chronic hepatitis C in nonalcoholic patients. Interferon therapy is less effective among alcoholic than nonalcoholic patients, even after a period of abstinence. Patients with chronic hepatitis C should restrict their alcohol intake to less than 10 g/d, and if cirrhosis is present or interferon therapy is planned, abstinence from alcohol should be encouraged. Future research efforts should focus on the epidemiology and pathogenesis of combined chronic hepatitis C and alcoholism.
Schiff
E R
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Division of Hepatology, Center for Liver Diseases, University of Miami School of Medicine, FL 33136, USA.
D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000502:physiology; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000209:etiology; D014779:Virus Replication
D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies