Peginterferon Alfa-2a plus Ribavirin for Initial Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis C in Korea.
- Author:
Hyuk LEE
1
;
Moon Seok CHOI
;
Seung Woon PAIK
;
Jeong Hwan KIM
;
Do Young KIM
;
Joon Hyoek LEE
;
Kwang Cheol KOH
;
Byung Chul YOO
;
Jong Chul RHEE
;
Soon Mi SONG
Author Information
1. Department of Medicine, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. swpaik@smc.samsung.co.kr
- Publication Type:Original Article ; English Abstract
- Keywords:
Peginterferon;
Ribavirin;
Hepatitis C;
Therapeutics;
Treatment outcome
- MeSH:
Ribavirin/*administration & dosage/adverse effects;
Polyethylene Glycols/*administration & dosage/adverse effects;
Middle Aged;
Male;
Korea;
Interferon Alfa-2a/*administration & dosage/adverse effects;
Humans;
Hepatitis C, Chronic/*drug therapy/virology;
Female;
Drug Therapy, Combination;
Antiviral Agents/*administration & dosage/adverse effects;
Adult
- From:The Korean Journal of Hepatology
2006;12(1):31-40
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:Korean
-
Abstract:
BACKGROUND/AIMS: Combination therapy with peginterferon and ribavirin is a standard therapy for western patients with chronic hepatitis C; however, its efficacy remains unclear in East Asian patients. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of administering peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin in native Korean patients with chronic hepatitis C. METHODS: Seventy-five patients with detectable HCV RNA (52.0% male, median age: 50.8 years) were eligible for the study. The patients were treated with peginterferon alfa-2a 180 mcg/week plus ribavirin 800 mg/day for 24 weeks (for genotype non-1, n=46) or 1000-1200 mg/day for 48 weeks (for genotype 1, n=29). The early virologic response (EVR), the end of treatment virologic response (ETVR), the sustained virologic response (SVR), the biochemical response and the adverse event were analyzed. RESULTS: EVR was seen in 86.2% of the patients with genotype 1. The ETVR was 58.6% in the genotype 1 group and 84.8% in the genotype non-1 group (P=0.02). The overall SVR was 70.7%: 55.2% in the genotype 1 group and 80.4% in the non-1 group (P=0.04). The sustained biochemical response was 64.0%. Multivariate analysis showed that the baseline HCV RNA level (Odds ratio: 0.045, 95% CI: 0.011-0.183, P<0.001) and genotype (Odds ratio: 0.247, 95% CI: 0.063-0.969, P=0.045) had an independent effect on the SVR. Neutropenia, anemia, flu-like symptoms and itching were the common adverse events. Aggravated liver function led to discontinuation of therapy for six patients. Dose modification in twenty-nine patients was effective without producing a significant reduction of the SVR. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that the efficacy of peginterferon plus ribavirin therapy in Koreans is comparable to those from studies on Western patients as an initial treatment for chronic hepatitis C patients. The baseline HCV RNA level and the genotype can be significant factors influencing the SVR.
