[HCV and extrahepatic diseases].
Besides being a hepatotropic virus and a common cause of chronic hepatitis, hepatitis C virus (HCV) has been linked to a variety of extrahepatic immunological manifestations. The high prevalence of HCV infections in some of these conditions suggests an important pathogenetic role of the virus. The recent observation that HCV infects peripheral blood mononuclear cells, such as CD8+ T lymphocytes, CD19+ B lymphocytes and monocytes/microphages, has given an insight into the possible mechanisms of HCV associated autoimmunity. In the clinical practice it is recommended not only to search for symptoms and signs of autoimmune disorders in patients with chronic hepatitis C, but also to test for hepatitis C virus infection patients with extrahepatic conditions known to be related to HCV. Even if the occurrence of autoimmune disorders or the exacerbations of autoimmune diseases has been reported during interferon therapy, antiviral therapy is effective in treating some of the extrahepatic disorders associated with HCV, namely mixed cryoglobulinemia and membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis. The extrahepatic manifestations associated with hepatitis C virus infection are reviewed according to the available data and the option of interferon therapy is discussed.
Durazzo
M
M
Dipartimento di Medicina Interna, Università degli Studi, Turin.
Mariani
G M
GM
Sacchi
C
C
Biava
M A
MA