title: The combination therapy of interferon and amantadine hydrochloride for patients with chronic hepatitis C.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The effect of interferon treatment for chronic hepatitis C patients with genotype 1b virus has been suboptimal. We studied the effect of the combination therapy of interferon and amantadine on patients with a high serum viral load of genotype 1b virus.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied the virological response of naive chronic hepatitis C patients with a high viral load of genotype 1b virus (4.5 log copies/50 microL or 100 kcopies/mL and higher) during interferon and amantadine administration for 6 months and 6 months after the end of treatment. Twenty patients were treated with interferon alone (natural interferon-beta 6 MU daily for 6 weeks and thrice-a-week for 20 weeks) for 26 weeks. Eleven patients were treated with the combination therapy of interferon and amantadine hydrochloride (100 mg orally daily) for 26 weeks.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After daily administration of interferon-beta intravenously once a day for 6 weeks, all patients showed the negative tests of serum HCV-RNA by polymerase-chain-reaction methods by the combination therapy, while 13 patients (65.0%) showed the negative tests by interferon alone (p = 0.0257). At the end of treatment, serum HCV-RNA were not detected in 54.5% of patients treated with interferon and amantadine, while it was detected in 50.0% of patients treated with interferon alone. At 6 months follow-up, only one patient (9.1%) could eradicate HCV-RNA in patients with interferon and amantadine, while no patient could with interferon monotherapy (not significantly).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Amantadine hydrochloride has the additive effects to interferon treatment on the virological responses of serum HCV-RNA during a co-administration, although the combination therapy has not shown a significantly promising effect on the eradication of HCV-RNA in the patients with chronic hepatitis C with a high viral load of genotype 1b virus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Medicine, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Yamada-oka 2-2, Suita City, Osaka 565-0871, Japan.
authors.forename: Hideji
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Hirokazu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Uyama
authors.forename: Hirayuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Enomoto
authors.forename: Yoshihiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kishima
authors.forename: Mitsunari
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
authors.forename: Kenya
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Yorihide
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Okuda
authors.forename: Tomonori
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hirotani
authors.forename: Toshifumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kuroda
authors.forename: Hiroaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Matsuda
authors.forename: Minoru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Terabayashi
authors.forename: Sanai
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Noguchi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000547:Amantadine / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D016899:Interferon-beta / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013997:Time Factors; D019562:Viral Load
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D016899:Interferon-beta; D000547:Amantadine