VIROLOGICAL RESPONSE TO INTERFERON TREATMENT IN HEPATITIS-C VIRUS CARRIERS WITH NORMAL AMINOTRANSFERASE LEVELS AND CHRONIC HEPATITIS

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) carriers with normal aminotransferase levels o ften show histological chronic hepatitis, This study was undertaken to determine the effect of interferon (IFN) in such patients, Nineteen H CV carriers with normal aminotransferase activities and chronic hepati tis were randomized to receive IFN-alpha 2b (3 million units 3 times w eekly for 12 months) or no treatment. Therapy was monitored by qualita tive and quantitative determination of viral RNA, Patients who did not clear HCV RNA after 6 months discontinued therapy, In all, 9 patients constituted the control group, while 10 patients were treated. Five o f these patients, still viremic after 6 months, stopped IFN, The remai ning 5 patients, who cleared the viral RNA within 6 months, completed the 12-month course, Three of these patients relapsed off treatment, a nd 2 were still free of viremia 12 months after stopping therapy. A tr ansient flare-up of aminotransferase activities was detected in 2 pati ents during treatment and in 3 patients after. None of the 9 control p atients cleared the viral RNA during follow-up. A variable degree of s equence heterogeneity was detected in the hypervariable region before therapy, and IFN treatment decreased sequence diversity in all patient s, These results indicate that IFN therapy can be effective in chronic HCV carriers with normal aminotransferase activities, inducing short- term virological response in 3 of 10 patients and sustained response i n 2. The effects of treatment on viral load and quasispecies complexit y were similar to those reported previously in patients with increased aminotransferase activities.