Retrospective Evaluation of Different Antiviral Treatments for Chronic Hepatitis C Infection

Introduction: The standard treatment for patients with chronic hepatitis C is a 6-12 months combination therapy with interferon-alpha (IFN-α) and ribavirin. The aim of this study was to evaluate different antiviral treatments for chronic hepatitis C. Patients and Methods: In this study, we compared the outcome of chronically infected hepatitis C virus patients (n= 130) who received different doses of IFN-α monotherapies or IFN-α plus ribavirin combination therapies. Patients received one of the following treatment regimens: group M.I (n= 5): 3 MU IFN α2b thrice weekly; group M.II (n= 17): 5-6 MU IFN-α2a/2b thrice weekly; group M.III (n= 19): Daily interferon-α2a/2b (5-6 MU per day for 12 weeks then 3-5 MU thrice weekly); group K.I (n= 60): 3 MU IFN-α2b thrice weekly plus 1000-1200 mg/day ribavirin; group K.II (n= 7): 5-6 MU IFN-α2a/2b thrice weekly plus 1000-1200 mg/d ribavirin; group K.III (n= 22): Daily interferon-α2a/2b (5-6 MU per day for 12 weeks then 3-5 MU thrice weekly) plus 1000-1200 mg/day ribavirin. Patients were treated for 12 months and observed for six months of posttreatment period. Results: The virological responses at the end of treatment were 40% in the group M.I, 88.2% in the group M.II, 75% in the group M.III, 88.1% in the group K.I, 85.7% in the group K.II and 64.7% in the group K.III (p= 0.044). The subgroup analysis showed that the virological response was significantly higher in group K.I than in group M.I (p= 0.024). The sustained responses were 40% in the group M.I, 64.7% in the group M.II, 66.7% in the group M.III, 71.2% in the group K.I, 71.4% in the group K.II and 50% in the group K.III (p> 0.05). Conclusion: In conclusion; sustained virological clearence was detected slightly more in the combination therapy with higher IFN dosage plus ribavirin