Back to Search
Start Over
Prevention of relapse in patients with chronic non-A, non-B/C hepatitis who respond to alpha-interferon. A controlled multicenter trial of low-dose maintenance therapy
- Source :
- Journal of Hepatology. 21:774-778
- Publication Year :
- 1994
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 1994.
-
Abstract
- We tested the efficacy of maintenance treatment with alpha-2a interferon, 1 megaunit thrice weekly for 6 months, in preventing relapse of non-A, non-B/C hepatitis in remission after treatment with alpha interferon given thrice weekly according to the following dose schedule: 3 megaunits for 3 months, 2 megaunits for 2 months and 1 megaunit for 1 month. Fifty-three patients with hepatitis C in remission were randomly allocated to a treatment group ( n =26) or a control group ( n =27). A relapse (aminotransferase activity >1.5 times the upper limit of normal) occurred in 46% of the controls and 35% of the treated patients (NS). Maintenance treatment had no significant influence on histopathologic changes evaluated by three independent observers: in both groups the overall score for histologic lesions improved between the initiation of interferon therapy and the end of the study. We conclude that relapses in patients with non-A, non-B/C hepatitis in remission after treatment with alpha interferon at tapering doses are not prevented by maintenance therapy with low-dose alpha interferon.
- Subjects :
- Hepatitis
medicine.medical_specialty
Hepatology
medicine.diagnostic_test
business.industry
Alpha interferon
Hepatitis C
medicine.disease
Gastroenterology
Surgery
law.invention
Maintenance therapy
Randomized controlled trial
law
Liver biopsy
Internal medicine
Multicenter trial
medicine
business
Interferon alfa
medicine.drug
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 01688278
- Volume :
- 21
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Journal of Hepatology
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi...........ce5dff696e9a065a4be562b4362ef693