Treatment with interferon plus ribavirin in anti-HIV negative patients with congenital coagulation disorders and chronic hepatitis C

Background. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infected hemophiliacs respond at low ra te to interferon (IFN) monotherapy. Aims. To assess efficacy of IFN and REV in HIV negative hemophiliacs with chronic hepatitis C and identify early p redictive factors of response. Methods. Twenty naive patients were treated with interferon and REV for twelve months. Response was assessed by both se rial ALT and HCV RNA levels. Results. Normalization of ALT with clearance o f HCV RNA occurred in seven (35%) patients. Age and age at infection were t he only features associated with a higher likelihood of response. In all re sponders the viral load had decreased by at least one log within two months of starting treatment. Conclusions. Combination of interferon and ribaviri n is well tolerated by hemophiliacs who achieve similar sustained response rates to non-hemophiliacs. Quantitative assessment of viral load at two mon ths of treatment is a useful method to identify non-responders at an early stage.