Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Interferon-alpha 2b therapy in low-activity hepatitis C: a pilot study

I Nordøy1, H B Krarup, H Bell

  • 1Medical Dept. A, Rikshospitalet, Oslo, Norway.

Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology
|January 23, 1998
PubMed
Summary

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Multidimensional analysis for the correlation of physico-chemical attributes to osteoblastogenesis in TiNbZrSnTa alloys.

Biomaterials advances·2023
Same author

Towards a regulation of food advertising?

The Proceedings of the Nutrition Society·2022
Same author

Vulvar Fordyce adenitis: A cohort of 45 women.

Annales de dermatologie et de venereologie·2021
Same author

An umbilical lesion.

Clinical and experimental dermatology·2021
Same author

Lipid antigens in bile from patients with chronic liver diseases activate natural killer T cells.

Clinical and experimental immunology·2020
Same author

The physiological and biochemical effects of gaming: A review.

Environmental research·2020

This study investigated interferon-alpha treatment for chronic hepatitis C patients with normal liver enzymes. While some patients cleared the virus during treatment, sustained viral clearance was low, with genotype influencing response rates.

Area of Science:

  • Hepatology
  • Virology
  • Immunology

Background:

  • Chronic hepatitis C (HCV) often presents with normal liver enzymes despite confirmed histologic damage.
  • Current guidelines recommend against treating HCV patients with normal alanine aminotransferase (ALAT) levels.
  • This patient group represents a significant portion of individuals with chronic hepatitis C.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the efficacy of interferon-alpha 2b in treating chronic hepatitis C patients with persistently normal ALAT levels.
  • To determine if histologic liver abnormalities alone warrant treatment in the absence of elevated liver enzymes.
  • To assess the influence of HCV genotype on treatment response in this specific patient cohort.

Main Methods:

  • A pilot study involved 23 HCV RNA-positive patients with ALAT levels below 1.5 times the upper normal limit for at least six months.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Patients had confirmed histologic liver abnormalities consistent with chronic hepatitis C.
  • Treatment consisted of 3 MU of interferon-alpha 2b administered three times weekly for six months.

    • Main Results:

    • Nine patients (39%) achieved undetectable HCV RNA during the six-month treatment period.
    • Only two patients (8.7%) maintained sustained viral clearance six months post-treatment.
    • HCV genotypes other than type 1 showed a significantly higher rate of viral clearance during treatment compared to genotype 1 (P = 0.005).

    Conclusions:

    • Interferon-alpha treatment yields a response in low-activity chronic hepatitis C similar to patients with elevated ALAT levels.
    • Hepatitis C virus genotype is a significant factor affecting the rate of virologic response to interferon-alpha.
    • Sustained viral clearance remains a challenge in this patient group, suggesting a need for further therapeutic strategies.