Interferon and hepatitis C

Article Abstract:

Drug therapy with interferon may be of limited usefulness in hepatitis C. Interferon may initially improve only half of the patients with hepatitis C, with only about 25% maintaining remission 6 months after an initial treatment period. It remains unclear whether only severely ill patients should be treated or those who are most likely to improve. Drug response to interferon within the first month may indicate success. Higher doses and long-term treatment may offer only marginal improvements at a higher cost. Alanine aminotransferase concentration may be a better therapeutic marker than expensive and invasive procedures, such as multiple liver biopsies. Until virus elimination can be established throughout the body, comprehensive evaluation of all available data needs to take place.

Interferon

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Combination therapy for hepatitis C infection

Article Abstract:

Most of the 100 million people worldwide who are infected with the hepatitis C virus have a mild form of the infection that is not fatal. However, others will develop liver disease and this group is expected to increase in number. Many will respond to interferon, but relapses are common. Two 1998 studies found that interferon alpha combined with ribavirin is more effective than interferon alpha alone. However, the reason for this is not clear because ribavirin's exact antiviral mechanism is not known.

Interferon alpha, Ribavirin

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HIV therapy -- what do we know, and when do we know it?

Article Abstract:

Clinical trials of AIDS drugs continue to show doctors which drugs may be best for treating individual patients. Twenty different AIDS drugs are available as of December, 2003, and most studies have shown that two or three drugs are necessary to completely suppress the virus. Studies published in 2003 show that zidovudine, lamivudine, and efavirenz may be a good combination to start with.

Anti-HIV agents

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