Open AccessPure red cell aplasia caused by pegylated interferon-α-2a plus ribavirin in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C
Author(s) -
Cheng-Shyong Chang,
ShengLei Yan,
HungYu Lin,
Fu-Lien Yu,
Chien-Yu Tsai
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
world journal of gastroenterology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.427
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 2219-2840
pISSN - 1007-9327
DOI - 10.3748/wjg.v17.i16.2155
Subject(s) - ribavirin , pure red cell aplasia , medicine , pegylated interferon , bone marrow aplasia , bone marrow , anemia , hepatitis c , gastroenterology , immunology , hepatitis c virus , virus
Pure red cell aplasia (PRCA) is a rare hematological disorder which is characterized by severe anemia, reticulocytopenia and almost complete absence of erythroid precursors in bone marrow. The pathophysiology of PRCA may be congenital or acquired. To our knowledge, there is only one case report in the English literature of PRCA after pegylated interferon combination therapy for chronic hepatitis C. We report a second case of PRCA after pegylated interferon combination treatment for chronic hepatitis C. The diagnosis of PRCA was confirmed by the typical findings of bone marrow biopsy. The possible etiologies of our case are also discussed in this paper.