EFFECT AND SIDE-EFFECTS OF ALPHA-INTERFERON TREATMENT IN HEMOPHILIA PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC HEPATITIS-C

To evaluate the effect and side-effects of alpha interferon 2B (IFN) t reatment in haemophilia patients with chronic hepatitis C (positive HC V antibody test, positive HCV-RNA test and ALT levels >2.5 x upper lim it of normal) eight HIV and HBs-ag negative haemophilia patients were treated with IFN for 26 weeks in a dosage of 5 mega units (MU) daily f or 2 weeks, 2.5 MU daily for 4 weeks and 1.5 MU 3 times a week for 20 weeks. Patients who were transient or non-responders after 26 weeks of IFN therapy were treated for 2.5 years with 5 MU IFN three times a we ek. At the end of 3 years follow-up, four patients were considered com plete responders (HCV-RNA negative) with complete and sustained ALT no rmalization and disappearance from HCV-RNA from blood, two patients on ly showed a transient response and two patients were non-responders. A il patients experienced the common side-effects of IFN treatment. Two patients complained about feelings of depression and impotence. For bo th this was the reason to stop IFN treatment. In one patient, IFN trea tment was stopped 90 weeks after start of therapy because of persisten t fatigue. In another patient the dosage was adjusted because of a dec rease in platelet count. No effect of IFN on bleeding frequency and ch ronic arthopathy was seen. We conclude that the clinical effects and s ide-effects of IFN therapy in patients with haemophilia and chronic he patitis C are comparable with those of non-haemophilia patients with c hronic hepatitis C. Haemophilia patients can be treated for chronic he patitis C infection in the same way as patients without haemophilia.