BACKGROUND & AIMS Durable post-treatment response is uncommon in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients on nucleos(t)ide analogue therapy. Response, response predictors and safety were assessed in patients who switched from long-term entecavir (ETV) to peginterferon alfa-2a. METHODS Hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive CHB patients who had received ETV for 9-36 months, with HBeAg <100 PEIU/ml a...

BACKGROUND Available treatments for hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-negative chronic hepatitis B are associated with poor sustained responses. As a result, nucleoside and nucleotide analogues are typically continued indefinitely, a strategy associated with the risk of resistance and unknown long-term safety implications. METHODS We compared the efficacy and safety of peginterferon alfa-2a (180 ...

OBJECTIVE To report a case of severe stomatitis probably induced by peginterferon alpha-2a. METHODS AND RESULTS A 42-year-old man with chronic hepatitis C genotype 1b commenced treatment with peginterferon alpha-2a 180 microg subcutaneously weekly and ribavirin 1000 mg/d orally. Twenty-eight days after commencing treatment, the patient experienced difficulties with swallowing, dryness of the ...

BACKGROUND The aim of the study was to determine the efficacy and safety of triple therapy with a first-generation protease inhibitor (PI; boceprevir, telaprevir) plus peginterferon alfa-2a or -2b plus ribavirin, and dual therapy (peginterferon alfa-2a or -2b plus ribavirin) in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) in routine clinical practice. METHODS PegBase was an international, prospect...

background egypt has one of the highest (16-8%) prevalence rates of hcv infection in the world. approximately 90% of egyptian hcv isolates belong to a single subtype (4a), which responds less successfully to interferon therapy than other subtypes. studies comparing the efficacy and safety of pegifn alfa-2a and pegifn alfa-2b in treatment-naive hcv-infected patients have shown conflicting result...

BACKGROUND Peginterferon alfa-2a (40 kDa) is currently administered using a prefilled syringe. The peginterferon alfa-2a disposable autoinjector is a new safety-engineered device designed to facilitate injection and reduce the risk of needlestick injuries. The analysis of two open-label Phase I trials evaluated the pharmacokinetics, successful administration, and tolerability of peginterferon a...

BACKGROUND Sustained virological response (SVR) is the primary objective in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C (CHC). Results from a recent clinical trial of patients with previously untreated CHC demonstrate that the combination of peginterferon alpha-2a and ribavirin produces a greater SVR than interferon alpha-2b and ribavirin combination therapy. However, the cost-effectiveness of peginte...

BACKGROUND & AIMS Improved therapies for peginterferon/ribavirin null or partial responders are needed. This study evaluated daclatasvir (NS5A inhibitor) and asunaprevir (NS3 protease inhibitor) plus peginterferon alfa-2a and ribavirin in this patient population. METHODS This open-label, phase 3 study (HALLMARK-QUAD; NCT01573351) treated patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype ...

BACKGROUND Chronic hepatitis C affects approximately 170 million people worldwide, and thus being one of the main causes of chronic liver disease. About 20% of patients with chronic hepatitis C will develop cirrhosis over 20 years, and present an increased risk of developing hepatic complications. Sustained virological response (SVR) is associated with a better prognosis compared to untreated p...

BACKGROUND Up to 60% of patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 infection do not have a sustained virologic response to therapy with peginterferon alfa plus ribavirin. METHODS In this randomized, phase 3 trial, we evaluated the addition of telaprevir to peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin in patients with HCV genotype 1 infection who had no response or a partial response to previous...