INTRODUCTION Hepatitis C virus reinfection occurs universally after liver transplantation with accelerated cirrhosis rates of up to 30% within 5 years after liver transplantation. Management of hepatitis C virus reinfection is complicated by drug interactions and pre-treatment. Dual antiviral therapy with pegylated interferon and ribavirin only reaches sustained virological response rates of ap...

conclusions treatment with peg ifn α achieved a sustained negativity of hdv rna in about one third of patients. duration of peg ifn α therapy might be prolonged to at least 24 months or more to prevent the occurrence of hepatitis b virus (hbv) relapse encountered six months after completion of the treatment. patients and methods the sample size was based on available patients potentially to be ...

Background: The response rates and duration of peginterferon alpha (PEG-IFN-a) and ribavirin combination therapy in chronic hepatitis C genotype 4, the prevalent genotype in the Middle East and Africa, are poorly documented. Aims: To compare the efficacy and safety of 24, 36, or 48 weeks of PEG-IFN-a-2b and ribavirin therapy in chronic hepatitis C genotype 4. Methods: In this prospective, rando...

BACKGROUND Hepatitis C virus infection is a major cause of cirrhosis; hepatocellular carcinoma; and liver transplantation. The aim of this study was to estimate hepatitis C virus disease progression and the burden of disease from a nationwide perspective. METHODS Using a model developed to forecast hepatitis C virus disease progression and the number of cases at each stage of liver disease; h...

BACKGROUND The impact of virologic response on hepatic function has not been previously defined. AIM To determine the relationships of quantitative liver function tests (QLFTs) with virological responses to peginterferon (PEG) +/- ribavirin (RBV) in patients with chronic hepatitis C and to use serial QLFTs to define the spectrum of hepatic improvement after sustained virological response (SVR...

BACKGROUND Abnormal serum lipid profiles have been noted in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Moreover, many reports suggest that serum lipoprotein profiles are more profoundly distorted in patients with HCV G1b infection who have an unfavorable response to pegylated interferon (peg-IFN) plus ribavirin (RBV) combination therapy. However, after the discovery of single nucl...

Hepatitis C therapy in the era of the newer direct-acting antiviral agents has radically changed our treatment schemes by achieving very high rates of sustained virological response. However, treatment with direct antiviral agents fails in a subgroup of patients. This group of so-called difficult-to-treat individuals is the subject of this paper, which reviews the causes of virological failure,...

Virological tools, including serological and molecular tools, are needed to diagnose chronic hepatitis B and C infections. They may also be useful to establish their prognosis, but they have found their principal application in guiding treatment decisions and assessing the virological responses to therapy. The goal of chronic hepatitis B therapy is to prevent progression of liver disease. This ...

BACKGROUND Although the current standard of care for controlling anaemia and neutropenia during anti-viral therapy for hepatitis C is to use dose reduction of ribavirin and pegylated interferon, respectively, erythropoietin and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor are now being advocated as alternatives to dose reduction. AIM To determine the cost-effectiveness of erythropoietin and granuloc...