Differential Impact of Adherence to Pegylated Interferon and Ribavirin in the Treatment of Genotype 1 High Viral Titer Chronic Hepatitis C

Abstract

To clarify the impact of adherence, we treated 122 genotype 1 high viral titer chronic hepatitis C patients with pegylated interferon (peg-IFN) and ribavirin for 48 weeks at nine referral hospitals, and evaluated the prognostic factors with a focus on the adherence to the treatment. This study included 68 (55.7%) treatment-naïve patients and 54 (44.3%) patients who did not respond to the previous treatment. Multivariate analysis revealed adherence to peg-IFN and ribavirin as the only significant predictor. Sustained virological response (SVR) rate was 72.2%, 19.0%, and 27.3% in patients given ≥80%, 60%–80%, and <60% dose peg-IFN, respectively, and was 68.6%, 41.2%, and 5.3% in those given ≥80%, 60%–80%, and <60% dose ribavirin, respectively. SVR rate sharply fell when exposure to peg-IFN was below 80% whereas it decreased in a stepwise manner as for ribavirin. Therefore, ≥80% of peg-IFN and as much as possible dose of ribavirin are desired to achieve SVR in the treatment of genotype 1 high viral titer chronic hepatitis C.

Association between an IL‐28B genetic polymorphism and the efficacy of the response‐guided pegylated interferon therapy in children with chronic hepatic C infection

“…Treatment regime, viral factors and host factors were related to the response of PEG IFN treatment. As host factors, younger age, less advanced liver histology, lighter bodyweight, the absence of insulin resistance and absence of alcohol consumption are associated with favorable response to treatment in adult patients . Because these factors tended to be more prevalent in our pediatric subjects than in a comparable population of adults, they conferred advantages in terms of the response to treatment in the present series.…”

“…As host factors, younger age, less advanced liver histology, lighter bodyweight, the absence of insulin resistance and absence of alcohol consumption are associated with favorable response to treatment in adult patients. [44][45][46] Because these factors tended to be more prevalent in our pediatric subjects than in a comparable population of adults, they conferred advantages in terms of the response to treatment in the present series. In general, the findings of liver histology in children with chronic HCV infection were mild or moderate in this study as well as in the previous studies.…”

Adherence to Chronic Hepatitis C Treatment Regimen: First Report From a Referral Center in Iran

“…Adherence to interferon and ribavirin has been reported from 54.1% to 95% in different populations (16-18). This wide variation in rate of adherence to anti-HCV medications alone or in combination could be attributed to several factors such as differences in methods of calculating adherence, duration of follow-up, probable confounders of adherence, and socio-cultural and economical features.…”

A retrospective cohort study of partial splenic embolization for antiviral therapy in chronic hepatitis C with thrombocytopenia

“…Further studies with an increased sample size will be needed in the future. Given that the SVR rate was sharply decreased when adherence to PEG-IFN was below 80% in the treatment of patients with genotype 1 and a high viral load [33], it appears that PSE may not be suitable for patients with genotype 1 requiring a sufficient dose of IFN-based therapy. A previous study [24] indicated that the SVR rate in patients with genotype 1 was 33%, compared to a rate of 100% in patients with genotype 2.…”