Background/Aims: Children with chronic hepatitis C were recently found to h
ave higher rates of sustained response to interferon compared to adults, Th
e aim of this study was to verify the response to interferon using frequent
viremia measurements.
Methods: Sera from 25 children (13 males; mean age 7.9 years) with chronic
hepatitis C, treated with recombinant alpha-2b interferon for 12 months, we
re tested for liver function tests and viremia levels for a median of 27.5
months, Autoantibodies were evaluated during and after interferon.
Results: Fifteen patients completed 12 months of interferon; treatment was
stopped in 10 other patients, In 11 (44%) patients viremia was undetectable
already at the second administration of interferon; one of them remained v
iremia-free up to the end of follow-up and had persistently normal alanine-
aminotransferase levels (complete sustained responder). A complete sustaine
d response was observed only in one other patient, who normalized alanine a
minotransferase and cleared viremia from the 3rd month of therapy. Three pa
tients with persistent viremia normalized alanine-aminotransferase from the
3rd week of therapy up to the end of follow-up (biochemical sustained resp
onders). Viremia was undetectable during treatment in four patients, who st
opped interferon because of worsening in hypertransaminasemia. Three of the
se four patients were anti-liver-kidney microsomal type 1-positive.
Conclusions: In this study the response rate to interferon was very low and
viremia and transaminase findings were often discordant.