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1: Pharmacotherapy. 1996 Jul-Aug;16(4):609-14.Links

A meta-analysis of interferon-alpha treatment of hepatitis D virus infection.

Malaguarnera M, Restuccia S, Pistone G, Ruello P, Giugno I, Trovato BA.

Department of Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, University of Catania, Italy.

The severity of chronic hepatitis D infection and its unfavorable progress necessiate research into drugs and protocols capable of changing the natural history of the disease. Over the last few years interferon (IFN)-alpha has been the drug of choice in the management of this infection. We assessed its long-term efficacy by analyzing 5 controlled and 10 uncontrolled trials conducted between 1987 and 1994. The Mantel-Haenszel-Peto method was used in the former to perform statistical analysis. The odds ratio (0.16, confidence interval 0.058-0.476) confirmed the efficacy of IFN-alpha, even if the coefficient was not significant because of the limited number of spontaneous remissions in the trials. Although IFN treatment is fully beneficial in only a small number of patients with chronic hepatitis D infection, at present it is the only available agent.

PMID: 8840366 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

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