Premium
Peginterferon alfa‐2a (40 kd) and ribavirin for black American patients with chronic HCV genotype 1
Author(s) -
Jeffers Lennox J.,
Cassidy William,
Howell Charles D.,
Hu Sylvia,
Reddy K. Rajender
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
hepatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.488
H-Index - 361
eISSN - 1527-3350
pISSN - 0270-9139
DOI - 10.1002/hep.20212
Subject(s) - ribavirin , medicine , peginterferon alfa 2a , gastroenterology , hepatitis c virus , adverse effect , alpha interferon , hepatitis c , prospective cohort study , interferon alfa , surgery , interferon , immunology , virus
Black Americans (blacks) have a high prevalence of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and respond poorly to therapy with interferon alfa‐based regimens, but they have been underrepresented in clinical trials. The aim of this study was to assess the rate of sustained virological response (SVR) to peginterferon alfa‐2a (40 kd) in combination with ribavirin in black patients chronically infected with HCV genotype 1. In a prospective, multicenter, open‐label trial, 78 black and 28 white American interferon‐naïve patients were enrolled to receive once weekly subcutaneous injections of 180 μg peginterferon alfa‐2a plus oral ribavirin (1000 mg/d for patients weighing less than 75 kg and 1200 mg/d for patients weighing 75 kg or more) for 48 weeks. Pre‐ and post‐treatment liver biopsies were evaluated for necroinflammation and fibrosis. SVR, defined as undetectable (<50 IU/mL) HCV RNA, was 26% in the black group and 39% in the white group. Although the SVR rate was lower in blacks than in whites, the SVR of 26% represents an improvement over previously reported SVR rates from smaller, retrospective studies of black patients. We also observed improvement in fibrosis in 25% of the black patients. No unexpected adverse events occurred. In conclusion , this prospective study evaluating responses of black patients with chronic hepatitis C to peginterferon alfa‐2a/ribavirin has demonstrated that treatment can be safely offered to such individuals with reasonable antiviral and histological benefit. (H EPATOLOGY 2004;39:1702–1708.)