Durability of Sustained Virologic Response in Chronic Hepatitis C.
- Author:
Ahmet UYANIKOGLU
1
;
Sabahattin KAYMAKOGLU
;
Ahmet DANALIOGLU
;
Filiz AKYUZ
;
Fatih ERMIS
;
Binnur PINARBASI
;
Kadir DEMIR
;
Fatih BESISIK
;
Yilmaz CAKALOGLU
Author Information
1. Department of Gastroenterology, Harran University Faculty of Medicine, Sanliurfa, Turkey. auyanikoglu@hotmail.com
- Publication Type:Original Article
- Keywords:
Chronic hepatitis C;
Interferons
- MeSH:
Achievement;
Biopsy;
Follow-Up Studies;
Genotype;
Hepacivirus;
Hepatitis C, Chronic;
Hepatitis, Chronic;
Humans;
Interferons;
Polymerase Chain Reaction;
Recurrence;
Retrospective Studies;
Viremia
- From:Gut and Liver
2013;7(4):458-461
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
BACKGROUND/AIMS: The aim of this study is to investigate the rate of sustained virologic response (SVR) in chronic hepatitis C patients receiving antiviral treatment. METHODS: The files of patients with chronic hepatitis C treated with interferon+/-ribavirin between 1995 and 2009 were reviewed retrospectively. Six months after the end of treatment, patients with negative hepatitis C virus (HCV)-RNA (<50 IU/mL, as determined by the polymerase chain reaction method) were enrolled in the study. RESULTS: The mean age of 196 patients (89 males) was 46.13+/-11.10 years (range, 17 to 73 years). In biopsies, the mean stage was 1.50+/-0.94; histological activity index was 7.18+/-2.43. In total, 139 patients received pegylated interferon (IFN)+ribavirin, 21 patients received classical IFN+ribavirin, and 36 patients received IFN alone. The HCV genotypes of 138 patients were checked: 77.5% were genotype 1b, and 22.5% were other genotypes. After achievement of SVR, the median follow-up period was 33.5 months (range, 6 to 112 months), and in this period relapse was only detected in two patients (1.02%) at 18 and 48 months after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: In total, 98.9% of patients with SVR in chronic hepatitis C demonstrated truly durable responses over the long-term follow-up period of 3 years; relapsed patients had intermittent or low-grade viremia.
