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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
medicine
Non-interferon-based therapy: An option for amelioration of necro-inflammation in hepatitis C patients who cannot afford interferon therapy
Liver International, Volume 25, No. 4, Year 2005
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Description
Objectives: Interferon (IFN) therapy is not affordable by the majority of Egyptian patients. Our aim was to tailor an effective and inexpensive regimen that ameliorates hepatic necro-inflammatory activity among chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients. Methods: One hundred and seventy naïve CHC patients with elevated alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (> 1.5-fold) and detectable hepatitis C virus (HCV)-RNA by polymerase chain reaction, who cannot afford IFN-based therapy were randomly allocated either to non-interferon-based therapy (N-IFN-BT) (group I) or silymarin therapy (group II). Group I comprised 87 patients (biopsy proved chronic hepatitis in 62 patients) who were administered a daily combination of ribavirin (600-800 mg) plus amantadine (200 mg) and ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) (500 mg) for 24 weeks. Group II comprised 83 patients who were administered Silymarin 450 mg/day for 24 weeks. Results: Statistical evaluation was conducted on 82 patients from group I and 72 from group II because of the withdrawal of five and 11 patients from Groups I and II, respectively. Age, sex, social status and biochemical parameters were comparable in both groups. Normalization of ALT at the end of treatment was achieved in 58.5% and 15.3% (P<0.001), whereas end of treatment virologic response (ETVR) was achieved in 2.4% and 0% of Groups I and II, respectively. Twenty-four weeks after cessation of therapy, sustained biochemical response (SBR) was achieved in 28% and 2.8% (P<0.001), while sustained virologic response (SVR) was maintained in 2.4% and 0% of the patients in Groups I and II, respectively. In Group I, histopathological examination revealed a decreased activity index by an average score of 1.5 points among 38/62 of the rebiopsied patients. Conclusion: Twenty-four weeks N-IFN-BT achieved a fourfold-higher ETBR and a tenfold-higher SBR compared with silymarin therapy, which reflects an improvement of necroinflammatory activity as proven by repeat histopathology. © Blackwell Munksgaard 2005.
Authors & Co-Authors
El-Zayadi, Abdel Rahman
Egypt, Cairo
Faculty of Medicine - Ain Shams University
Attia, Mohy El Deen
Egypt, Giza
Theodor Bilharz Research Institute
Badran, Hanaa Mostafa
Egypt, Menofia
National Liver Institute
El-Tawil, Ahmed A.
Egypt, Cairo
Ain Shams University
Zalata, Khaled Refaat
Egypt, Mansoura
Faculty of Medicine
Barakat, Eman Mahmoud Fathy
Egypt, Cairo
Faculty of Medicine - Ain Shams University
Selim, Osaïma El Sayed
Egypt, Cairo
Ain Shams University
El-Nakeeb, Adham
Egypt, Giza
Cairo Liver Center
Saied, Ahmed
Egypt, Giza
Cairo Liver Center
Statistics
Citations: 15
Authors: 9
Affiliations: 6
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1111/j.1478-3231.2005.01110.x
ISSN:
14783223
Research Areas
Infectious Diseases