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Medical News High-Dose Interferon Effective in Patients Coinfected With Hepatitis CMarch 12, 2003 A note from TheBody.com: Since this article was written, the HIV pandemic has changed, as has our understanding of HIV/AIDS and its treatment. As a result, parts of this article may be outdated. Please keep this in mind, and be sure to visit other parts of our site for more recent information! A researcher in Japan has found that interferon (IFN) treatment may be effective for both HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Hideji Hanabusa, working at Ogikubo Hospital in Tokyo, assessed the efficacy of high-dose IFN therapy in coinfected hemophiliacs. He reported that IFN-treated patients showed significant reductions in levels of both viral pathogens. Thirty patients -- 15 coinfected with HIV and HCV, and 15 age-matched patients with HCV alone -- took high-dose IFN-alpha-2a therapy for 24 weeks. The report states that HIV viral loads dropped from roughly 7,410 copies/mL to 320 copies/mL after two weeks. Data showed that HCV RNA was undetectable in four of 12 evaluable HIV-positive patients, and in six of 15 HCV-alone patients after 24 weeks. Three HIV-positive patients had to discontinue treatment because of IFN-related toxicity. "Induction therapy and the dose of IFN should be evaluated in combination therapy with IFN and ribavirin," Hanabusa concluded. The full report, "Efficacy of Induction Therapy with High-Dose Interferon for Patients with Hemophilia and Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Hepatitis C Coinfection," was published in Clinical Infectious Diseases (2002;35(12):1527-1533). Drug Week 01.24.03; Michael Greer A note from TheBody.com: Since this article was written, the HIV pandemic has changed, as has our understanding of HIV/AIDS and its treatment. As a result, parts of this article may be outdated. Please keep this in mind, and be sure to visit other parts of our site for more recent information!  This article was provided by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is a part of the publication CDC HIV/Hepatitis/STD/TB Prevention News Update.
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