RETREATMENT WITH 24-WEEK COURSE OF INTERFERON-ALPHA FOR PATIENTS WITHCHRONIC HEPATITIS-C

Twenty-nine patients with chronic hepatitis C were retreated with a 24 -week course of natural interferon-a to evaluate the efficacy of retre atment with interferon for patients who were resistant to previous the rapy. At 6 months after the end of retreatment, three patients (10%) h ad achieved sustained alanine aminotransferase normalization and susta ined clearance of hepatitis C virus RNA in serum. Fifteen patients (52 %) showed alanine aminotransferase normalization during retreatment bu t suffered from relapse during the 24 weeks after retreatment. In 11 p atients (38%), no significant decrease of alanine aminotransferase was observed during and after retreatment. Three of ten patients with hep atitis C virus RNA of 2.3 x 10(5) equivalents/ml or less became sustai ned responders but none of the patients with a higher virus level achi eved a sustained response. These results indicate that retreatment wit h a 24-week course of interferon is not efficient and other approaches are needed to attain a higher rate of sustained response, especially in patients with high viral load.