title: Impaired response to interferon-alpha2b plus ribavirin in cirrhotic patients with genotype 3a hepatitis C virus infection.
abstract: Patients with chronic infection with the 3a genotype of hepatitis C virus (HCV) are considered as 'easy-to-treat' with interferon/ribavirin (IFN/RBV), independent of liver disease severity. However, patients with extensive fibrosis or cirrhosis were under-represented in all the registration Phase III trials performed so far. To assess the influence of liver fibrosis on the outcome of anti-HCV therapy, all patients with genotype 3a hepatitis C who were naive to IFN-based therapies, and received RBV combined with standard IFN or pegylated IFN-(alpha2b (peg-IFN-alpha2b) as standard of care for their disease, were investigated at our centre. A sustained virological response (SVR) was achieved in 68 of 91 patients (75%) independent of IFN type, pretreatment viraemia, clearance of HCV RNA at week 4 and relevant co-morbidities. A SVR was less common in cirrhotics (6 of 17) than in non-cirrhotics (62 of 74; 35% vs 84%; P<0.0005). Compared to non-cirrhotics, the age and sex adjusted odds ratio (OR) of treatment failure for cirrhotics was 10.1 (95% confidence interval: 2.4-41.7). By multivariate analysis, cirrhosis was the only predictor of non-SVR. In conclusion, cirrhosis is an independent predictor of IFN/RBV treatment failure in patients chronically infected with HCV 3a and is associated with an increased risk of post-treatment hepatitis relapse. Evaluation of liver fibrosis is important in the management of patients with genotype 3a hepatitis C, since it helps to predict response to IFN/RBV therapy.
authors.affiliation: A.M. Migliavacca Centre for Liver Disease, Division of Gastroenterology, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico, Mangiagalli e Regina Elena, University of Milan, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Aghemo
authors.forename: Maria Grazia
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Rumi
authors.forename: Roberta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Soffredini
authors.forename: Roberta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: D'Ambrosio
authors.forename: Guido
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ronchi
authors.forename: Ersilio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Del Ninno
authors.forename: Silvano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gallus
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Colombo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007372:Interferons / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000821:virology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D012254:Ribavirin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017211:Treatment Failure; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D012254:Ribavirin; D007372:Interferons