title: Pilot study of triple antiviral therapy for chronic hepatitis C in interferon alpha non-responders.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  No effective therapy exists for interferon non-responding chronic hepatitis C patients.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Pilot study evaluating the potential efficacy and safety of triple antiviral therapy in interferon-alpha non-responders.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty consecutive adult patients with chronic hepatitis C who had failed to respond to a 6-month course of interferon alpha were randomly assigned to receive a combination of interferon alpha + oral ribavirin (double therapy), or the same combination + oral amantadine (triple therapy), for 6 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  By the end of therapy, normal alanine transaminase (biochemical response) was obtained in 2 out of 10 patients on double therapy but in 7 out of 10 on triple therapy (p < 0.05), and negative serum hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA (virological response) occurred in 1 out of 10 patients on double therapy but in 7 out of 10 patients on triple therapy (p < 0.01). Six months after therapy, biochemical response was sustained in 1 (double therapy) and 4 patients (triple therapy), respectively, and the virological response was sustained in no patient on double therapy but in 3 patients on triple therapy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Triple antiviral therapy seems to be able to induce biochemical and virological responses in interferon alpha non-responders with chronic hepatitis C.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, Policlinico S. Orsola, University of Bologna, Italy. sbrillanti@csi.com
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Brillanti
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Foli
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Di Tomaso
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gramantieri
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Masci
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bolondi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D000547:Amantadine / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000097:blood; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000201:enzymology / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D012254:Ribavirin / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D012367:RNA, Viral; D012254:Ribavirin; D000547:Amantadine; D000410:Alanine Transaminase