The antibody response to hepatitis B virus vaccination is negatively influenced by the hepatitis C virus viral load in patients with chronic hepatitis C: a case-control study

May 29, 2002

The antibody response to hepatitis B virus vaccination is negatively

influenced by the hepatitis C virus viral load in patients with chronic

hepatitis C: a case-control study

Leroya; Marc Bourliereb; Magali Duranda; Armand Abergelc; Albert

Trand; line Baude; le Botta-Fridlundf; André Gerolamig; Denis

Ouzanh; Philippe Halfoni; Jean-Pierre Zarskia,e

aDepartment of Hepatogastroenterology, Grenoble, bDepartment of

Hepatogastroenterology, Marseille, cDepartment of Hepatogastroenterology,

Clermont-Ferrand, dDepartment of Hepatogastroenterology, Nice, eLaboratory

of Virology UPRES A CNRS 5082, Grenoble, fDepartment of

Hepatogastroenterology, Hôpital la Conception, Marseille, gDepartment of

Hepatogastroenterology, Hôpital la Timone, Marseille, hInstitut

Arnaul-Tzanck, St t du Var, and iLaboratory Alphabio, Marseille,

France

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF GASTROENTEROLOGY & HEPATOLOGY 2002;14:485-489

The purpose of this work was to evaluate in a case-control study the

immunogenicity of a recombinant hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccine in patients

with chronic hepatitis C. Seventy-seven patients with histologically proven

chronic hepatitis C without cirrhosis were included in a prospective trial

and matched for sex and age to 231 healthy adult subjects. Recombinant HBV

vaccine was administered at a dose of 20 g at months 0, 1 and 2. The

definition of 'responder to vaccination' was anti-HBs titre > 10 mIU/ml

after the three injections. Forty-nine (63.6%) chronic hepatitis C patients

were responders to vaccination, compared with 217 (93.9%) controls (P <

0.0001). After the three injections, anti-HBs titres were 156 ± 260 and 615

± 435 mIU/ml (P < 0.0001), respectively. Chronic hepatitis C patients who

were non-responders to vaccination had significantly higher viral load than

responders to vaccination. Moreover, a negative correlation was observed

between viral load and anti-HBs concentration (r = -0.36, P = 0.003). No

significant side effects were observed. There was no effect of vaccination

on alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels and hepatitis C virus (HCV) viral

load during or after vaccination. In multivariate analysis, the main

predictive factors of response to HBV vaccine were absence of anti-HCV

antibodies (OR = 7.65, P < 0.0001), weight < 75 kg (OR = 1.99, P < 0.035),

and age < 50 years (OR = 1.58, P < 0.082). Our results suggest that viral

load seems to negatively influence the response to HBV vaccine.

Keywords: chronic hepatitis; HBV; HCV; hepatitis B vaccine; hepatitis B

virus; hepatitis C virus

Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol 2002 May;14(5):485-489

Recommended Posts