title: Symptomatic acute hepatitis C in Egypt: diagnosis, spontaneous viral clearance, and delayed treatment with 12 weeks of pegylated interferon alfa-2a.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to estimate the proportion of spontaneous viral clearance (SVC) after symptomatic acute hepatitis C and to evaluate the efficacy of 12 weeks of pegylated interferon alfa-2a in patients who did not clear the virus spontaneously.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with symptomatic acute hepatitis C were recruited from two "fever hospitals" in Cairo, Egypt. Patients still viremic three months after the onset of symptoms were considered for treatment with 12 weeks of pegylated interferon alfa-2a (180 microg/week).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Between May 2002 and February 2006, 2243 adult patients with acute hepatitis were enrolled in the study. The SVC rate among 117 patients with acute hepatitis C was 33.8% (95%CI [25.9%-43.2%]) at three months and 41.5% (95%CI [33.0%-51.2%]) at six months. The sustained virological response (SVR) rate among the 17 patients who started treatment 4-6 months after onset of symptoms was 15/17 = 88.2% (95%CI [63.6%-98.5%]).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Spontaneous viral clearance was high (41.5% six months after the onset of symptoms) in this population with symptomatic acute hepatitis C. Allowing time for spontaneous clearance should be considered before treatment is initiated for symptomatic acute hepatitis C.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Noha
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sharaf Eldin
authors.forename: Soheir
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ismail
authors.forename: Hala
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mansour
authors.forename: Claire
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rekacewicz
authors.forename: Moustafa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: El-Houssinie
authors.forename: Sherif
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: El-Kafrawy
authors.forename: Saeed
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: El Aidi
authors.forename: Mohamed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abdel-Hamid
authors.forename: Gamal
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Esmat
authors.forename: Stanislas
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pol
authors.forename: Arnaud
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fontanet
authors.forename: Mostafa K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Mohamed
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004534:Egypt; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000821:virology*; D006801:Humans; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D019562:Viral Load
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D012367:RNA, Viral; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; C100416:peginterferon alfa-2a