VEILLON P, PAYAN C, FOUCHARD-HUBERT I, LOUSTAUD-RATTI V, LUNEL-FABIANI F; and the Fontevraud Study Group; Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (43rd: 2003: Chicago, Ill.).

Abstr Intersci Conf Antimicrob Agents Chemother Intersci Conf Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2003 Sep 14-17; 43: abstract no. V-1728.

Laboratoire de Bacterio-Virologie CHU Angers, Angers, France.

BACKGROUND: We conducted a trial including 203 patients with chronic hepatitis C, naives of treatment, evaluating the antiviral efficiency of Ribavirin, given in second intention in non-responders to interferon alone, by studying viral kinetics. METHODS: Patients were treated with interferon at the dosage of 3 or 6 million units three times a week with or without Ribavirin according to response under treatment. Viral kinetics were assessed during treatment follow-up by serial measurements of HCV RNA (bDNA 3.0 and Monitor 2.0) and a new serological assay developed by Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics able to quantify total Hepatitis C virus (HCV) core antigen (HCV cAg). RESULTS: A significant initial drop in HCV RNA or HCV cAg, under interferon alone, was associated with response to therapy (- 4.85 +/- 1.33 log for HCV RNA in sustained responders to interferon monotherapy versus - 1.86 +/- 1.53 log for others groups, p < 0.001). In-patients receiving Ribavirin in second intention, we also observed a similar drop in HCV RNA and HCV cAg, predictive of sustained response (- 2.67 +/- 1.26 log for HCV RNA in sustained responders versus - 0.44 +/- 0.49 log in non-responders, p < 0.001). The positive predictive value (PPV) and the negative predictive value (NPV) were, respectively, 100% and 43% of an undetectable HCV RNA, 93% and 67% of an undetectable HCV core antigen, after one month of treatment. At 3 months of treatment, the PPV and NPV were, respectively, 100% and 66% for HCV RNA, 95% and 90% for HCV cAg. CONCLUSIONS: These results support that Ribavirin has a clear antiviral effect in interferon treated patients and that kinetics of HCV RNA and HCV Core antigen under interferon plus Ribavirin treatment are highly predictive of a sustained virological response.

Publication Types:

• Meeting Abstracts

Keywords:

• Antiviral Agents
• Hepacivirus
• Hepatitis C, Chronic
• Humans
• Interferon Alfa-2b
• Interferons
• Kinetics
• RNA
• RNA, Viral
• Ribavirin

Other ID:

• GWAIDS0025576

UI: 102265200

From Meeting Abstracts