Treatment of chronic hepatitis C with high-dose interferon alpha-2b. A multicenter study

A comparative study of three different high-dose regimens of interferon-alpha-2b (IFN) was conducted in patients with chronic hepatitis C to determine which was better at obtaining a sustained remission. A total of 126 patients were assigned randomly to one of three groups: group A was given 10 million international units (MIU) of IFN six times a week for eight weeks; group B was given 10 MIU IFN six times a week for four weeks followed by three times a week for an additional eight weeks; group C was given 10 MIU IFN six times a week for two weeks followed by three times a week for 12 weeks. The total dose administered to each group was 480 MIU/patient. Only the dosing schedule varied among the three groups. Among 98 efficacy-evaluable patients, a sustained alanine aminotransferase (ALT) response, defined as persistent normalization of the ALT for greater than six months after the termination of treatment, was achieved in 21.2% (7/33) of group A, 42.3% (11/26) of group B, and 54.5% (18/33) of group C patients. Similarly, a sustained loss of measurable serum hepatitis C virus RNA was observed in 28.6% (8/28) of group A, 40.9% (9/22) of group B, and 48.3% (14/29) of group C patients. Based upon these data, it can be concluded that 10 MIU of IFN administered six days a week for two weeks followed by three times a week for an additional 12 weeks produces the highest rate of both biochemical and virological responses to IFN therapy in patients with chronic HCV.