ArticleBMC research notes2012
The effect of pegylated interferon-alpha2b and ribavirin combination therapy for chronic hepatitis C infection in elderly patients.
Article in BMC research notes, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 23 citations in OpenAlex.
- Hepatitis C Infection in the Elderly.Digestive diseases and sciences · 2015Pooled it
- Predictors for dose reduction of antiviral therapy in older patients infected with hepatitis C virus: a meta-regression analysis.European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2014Pooled it
- Article
- Thrombocytopenia in Virus Infections.Journal of clinical medicine · 2021Review
- Association of sustained virologic response with reduced progression to liver cirrhosis in elderly patients with chronic hepatitis C.Clinical interventions in aging · 2016Article
- Article
- Antiviral Therapy in Elderly Patients With Hepatitis C Virus Infection.Gastroenterology & hepatology · 2015Article
- Individualized treatment strategies and predictors of virological response for chronic hepatitis C: a multicenter prospective study from China.International journal of clinical and experimental medicine · 2015Article
- Age-related differences in response to peginterferon alfa-2a/ribavirin in patients with chronic hepatitis C infection.World journal of gastroenterology · 2014Observational
- Treatment Response and Tolerability of Pegylated Interferon-α Plus Ribavirin Combination Therapy in elderly Patients (≥ 65 years) With Chronic Hepatitis C in Korea.Hepatitis monthly · 2012Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
16 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe clearance of hepatitis C virus infection by interferon therapy significantly reduces the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma and death in elderly chronic hepatitis patients. However, there are few reports concerning the efficacy and safety of pegylated interferon-alpha2b plus ribavirin combination therapy in elderly patients. The aims of the present study were to examine the effect and safety of pegylated interferon-alpha2b plus ribavirin combination therapy in 427 patients with chronic hepatitis C infection. We compared the rates of sustained virological response--defined as the absence of detectable hepatitis C virus in serum 24 weeks after the treatment ended--and the treatment discontinuation rate between 319 younger patients aged < 65 years and 108 elderly patients aged ≥ 65 years. We also examined the factors contributing to a sustained virological response.
resultsThere was no significant difference in the sustained virological response rate between younger patients and elderly patients according to their hepatitis C virus genotype (41.5% (100/241) and 40.7% (35/86) for genotype 1; P = 0.899, 89.7% (70/78) and 86.4% (19/22) for genotype 2; P = 0.703, respectively). There was also no significant difference in the treatment discontinuation rate between the two age groups (10.3% (33/319) and 13.9% (15/108), respectively; P = 0.378). There were no serious adverse events requiring hospitalization. The factors contributing significantly to a sustained virological response in elderly patients were gender, hepatitis C virus genotype, platelet count, and the presence of a rapid or early virological response (undetectable hepatitis C virus in serum at weeks 4 or 12 of treatment, respectively). However, upon multivariate analysis, the presence of an early virological response was the only significant factor (odds ratio: 0.115, 95% confidence interval: 0.040- 0.330, P < 0.001).
conclusionsThe efficacy and safety of pegylated interferon-alpha2b plus ribavirin combination therapy in elderly patients are not always inferior to those in younger patients. Obtaining an early virological response may be essential to achieve a sustained virological response in elderly patients with chronic hepatitis C infection.
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