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Please Note: Due to volume considerations, not all questions can be answered. Questions most likely to be answered will be those of general interest to a broad group of visitors to this forum. Questions pertaining to a specific case; requests for diagnosis, medical advice, or second opinion; or requests for opinions about untested alternative therapies will generally not be answered.

The participation of Dr. McGovern in this Forum is made possible in part by an independent educational grant from Roche Laboratories.

Ask the Experts about Hepatitis and HIV Coinfection
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co-infection and heart disease
Jun 8, 2008

Dr. McGovern, Since I am on both HIV meds and heart meds, I was told by the liver specialist that the treatment for my HCV would kill me. Do you advocate any natural remedies that may have worked for others? My CD4 and viral loads for the HIV are good, but the HCV is over 1 million copies.

Response from Dr. McGovern

My main concern would be to avoid alcohol, which can further hasten scarring in patients with HCV. I would also be certain to have immunization (if needed) for hepatitis A and B.

There are not really any great studies with "natural remedies"...Milk thistle is not harmful; some advocate vitamin E because it is an anti-oxidant. However, neither have been shown to slow down disease progression.



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