Is the Rapid Virologic Response a Positive Predictive Factor of Sustained Virologic Response in all Pretreatment Status Genotype 1 Hepatitis C Patients Treated With Peginterferon-alpha2b and Ribavirin?

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J Clin Gastroenterol. 2008 Dec 10. [Epub ahead of print]

Is the Rapid Virologic Response a Positive Predictive Factor of Sustained

Virologic Response in all Pretreatment Status Genotype 1 Hepatitis C Patients

Treated With Peginterferon-alpha2b and Ribavirin?

de Segadas-Soares JA, Villela-Nogueira CA, RM, Nabuco LC, Brandão-Mello

CE, Coelho HS.

Hepatology Division, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro,

Brazil.

INTRODUCTION: Currently it is not yet defined if the rapid virologic response

(RVR) can predict a sustained virologic response (SVR) in relapsers and

nonresponders. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate treatment-RVR as a predictive factor of

SVR in genotype 1 hepatitis C treatment naive, relapsers, and nonresponder

patients treated with pegylated interferon-alpha (PEG-IFN-alpha2b) and

ribavirin. METHODS: One hundred sixty-seven genotype 1 hepatitis C patients who

were treated with PEG-IFN-alpha2b and ribavirin and had SVR assessed were

included. Hepatitis C virus RNA analysis at the fourth week of treatment was

performed in all patients. The exclusion criteria were hepatitis B virus and/or

HIV co-infection. A comparative analysis was performed between the groups with

and without RVR and a logistic regression model was applied. RESULTS: One

hundred sixty-seven patients were analyzed, 103 (62%) were naives, 22 (13%)

relapsers, and 42 (25%) nonresponders. The SVR rates were 44% in naives, 68% in

relapsers, and 12% in nonresponders. RVR was attained in 51/167 (31%) patients

and in this group the SVR was higher than in those without RVR (75% vs. 23%; P