Efficacy of 6-month interferon therapy in chronic hepatitis B virus infection in Japan |
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Authors: | Fumitaka Suzuki Yasuji Arase Norio Akuta Akihito Tsubota Yoshiyuki Suzuki Hitomi Sezaki Tetsuya Hosaka Takashi Someya Masahiro Kobayashi Satoshi Saitoh Kenji Ikeda Mariko Kobayashi Marie Matsuda Junko Satoh Hiromitsu Kumada |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Gastroenterology, Toranomon Hospital, 2-2-2 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-8470, Japan;(2) Research Institute for Hepatology, Toranomon Branch Hospital, Kawasaki, Japan |
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Abstract: | Background In Japan, there are few studies of long-term (more than 1 month) interferon (IFN) therapy for chronic hepatitis B (CHB). In this retrospective study, we investigated the efficacy and predictors of response to 6-month IFN therapy.Methods We analyzed 66 Japanese patients with CHB who were treated with IFN for 6 months. They comprised patients who were hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive (n = 45) and -negative (n = 21). One (2%), 8 (12%), and 51 (77%) patients were infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV) genotypes A, B, and C, respectively. Responders in patients positive for HBeAg were defined as those who showed normalization of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level, HBeAg loss, and HBV DNA negativity at 6 months after completion of IFN therapy. In patients negative for HBeAg, responders were defined as those patients who showed normalization of ALT level and HBV DNA negativity at the same 6-month time point.Results Of the 45 patients with HBeAg at the commencement of IFN therapy, 9 (20%) were responders. Young patients, especially those with a high serum ALT level, were significantly more likely to respond to IFN therapy. Of the 21 patients negative for HBeAg, 13 (62%) were responders. There were no significant differences in clinical characteristics between responders and nonresponders among patients negative for HBeAg. Multivariate analyses identified HBeAg negativity and young age as independent factors associated with a positive response to 6-month IFN therapy. However, long-term follow-up of the treated patients showed a fall in the response rate.Conclusions The response rate to 6-month IFN therapy among HBeAg-positive patients was low. However, young patients may require long-term IFN therapy. |
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Keywords: | interferon HBV HBeAg genotype |
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