Journal of Hepatology
Volume 44, Issue 1 , Pages 4-7 , January 2006

Treating patients with HCV genotype 1 and low viraemia: More than meets the eye

  • Antonio Craxì

      Affiliations

    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Address: UOC Gastroenterologia & Epatologia, Piazza delle Cliniche 2, 90127, Palermo, Italy. Tel.: +39 091 655 2280; fax: +39 091 655 2156.
    • ,
  • Calogero Cammà

References 

  1. Manns MP, McHutchison JG, Gordon SC, Rustgi VK, Shiffman M, Reindollar R, et al. Peginterferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin compared with interferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin for initial treatment of chronic hepatitis C: a randomised trial. Lancet. 2001;358:958–965
  2. Fried MW, Shiffman ML, Reddy KR, Smith C, Marinos G, Goncales FL, et al. Peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin for chronic hepatitis C virus infection. N Engl J Med. 2002;347:975–982
  3. Lindsay KL, Trepo C, Heintges T, Shiffman ML, Gordon SC, Hoefs JC, et al. Hepatitis interventional therapy group, a randomized, double-blind trial comparing pegylated interferon alfa-2b to interferon alfa-2b as initial treatment for chronic hepatitis C. Hepatology. 2001;34:395–403
  4. Zeuzem S, Feinman SV, Rasenack J, Heathcote EJ, Lai MY, Gane E, et al. Peginterferon alfa-2a in patients with chronic hepatitis C. N Engl J Med. 2000;343:1666–1672
  5. Poynard T, Marcellin P, Lee SS, Niederau C, Minuk GS, Ideo G, et al. Randomised trial of interferon alpha2b plus ribavirin for 48 weeks or for 24 weeks versus interferon alpha2b plus placebo for 48 weeks for treatment of chronic infection with hepatitis C virus. International hepatitis interventional therapy group (IHIT). Lancet. 1998;352:1426–1432
  6. McHutchison JG, Gordon SC, Schiff ER, Shiffman ML, Lee WM, Rustgi VK, et al. Interferon alfa-2b alone or in combination with ribavirin as initial treatment for chronic hepatitis C. Hepatitis interventional therapy group. N Engl J Med. 1998;339:1485–1492
  7. Davis GL, Wong JB, McHutchison JG, Manns MP, Harvey J, Albrecht J. Early virologic response to treatment with peginterferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Hepatology. 2003;38:645–652
  8. Ferenci P, Fried MW, Shiffman ML, Smith CI, Marinos G, Goncales FL, et al. Predicting sustained virological responses in chronic hepatitis C patients treated with peginterferon alfa-2a (40KD)/ribavirin. J Hepatol. 2005;43:425–433
  9. Hadziyannis SJ, Sette H, Morgan TR, Balan V, Diago M, Marcellin P, et al Peginterferon-alpha2a and ribavirin combination therapy in chronic hepatitis C: a randomized study of treatment duration and ribavirin dose. Ann Intern Med. 2004;140:346–355
  10. Magrin S, Craxì A, Fabiano C, Marino L, Fiorentino G, Lo Iacono O, et al. HCV viraemia is more important than genotype as a predictor of response to interferon in Sicily (southern Italy). J Hepatol. 1996;25:583–590
  11. Berg T, Sarrazin C, Herrmann E, Hinrichsen H, Gerlach T, Zachoval R, et al. Prediction of treatment outcome in patients with chronic hepatitis C: significance of baseline parameters and viral dynamics during therapy. Hepatology. 2003;37:600–609
  12. Terrault NA, Pawlotsky JM, McHutchison J, Anderson F, Krajden M, Gordon S, et al. Clinical utility of viral load measurements in individuals with chronic hepatitis C infection on antiviral therapy. J Viral Hepatol. 2005;12:465–472
  13. Chevaliez S, Pawlotsky JM. Use of virologic assays in the diagnosis and management of hepatitis C virus infection. Clin Liver Dis. 2005;9:371–382
  14. Zeuzem S, Buti M, Ferenci P, Sperl J, Horsmans Y, Cianciara J, et al. Efficacy of 24 weeks treatment with peginterferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin in patients with chronic hepatitis C infected with genotype 1 and low pretreatment viraemia. J Hepatol 2006; 44: 97–103.
  15. Mangia A, Santoro R, Minerva N, Ricci GL, Carretta V, Persico M, et al. Peginterferon alfa-2b and ribavirin for 12 vs. 24 weeks in HCV genotype 2 or 3. N Engl J Med. 2005;352:2609–2617
  16. von Wagner M, Huber M, Berg T, Hinrichsen H, Rasenack J, Heintges T, et al. Peginterferon-alpha-2a (40KD) and ribavirin for 16 or 24 weeks in patients with genotype 2 or 3 chronic hepatitis C. Gastroenterology. 2005;129:522–527
  17. Lindahl K, Schvarcz R, Bruchfeld A, Stahle L. Evidence that plasma concentration rather than dose per kilogram body weight predicts ribavirin-induced anaemia. J Viral Hepatol. 2004;11:84–87
  18. Bruno S, Cammà C, Di Marco V, Rumi M, Vinci M, Camozzi M, et al. Peginterferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin for naive patients with genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C: a randomized controlled trial. J Hepatol. 2004;41:474–481
  19. Pontisso P, Bellati G, Brunetto M, Chemello L, Colloredo G, Di Stefano R, et al. Hepatitis C virus RNA profiles in chronically infected individuals: do they relate to disease activity?. Hepatology. 1999;29:585–589

PII: S0168-8278(05)00693-8

doi: 10.1016/j.jhep.2005.11.002

Journal of Hepatology
Volume 44, Issue 1 , Pages 4-7 , January 2006

Article Tools