American Journal of Kidney Diseases
Volume 51, Issue 2 , Pages 263-277 , February 2008

Interferon Treatment in Hemodialysis Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection: A Systematic Review of the Literature and Meta-analysis of Treatment Efficacy and Harms

  • Craig E. Gordon, MD, MS

      Affiliations

    • Division of Nephrology, Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies, Tufts-New England Medical Center, Boston MA
    • Corresponding Author InformationAddress correspondence to Craig E. Gordon, MD, MS, Tufts-New England Medical Center, 750 Washington St, Box 391, Boston, MA 02111.
  • ,
  • Katrin Uhlig, MD, MS

      Affiliations

    • Division of Nephrology, Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies, Tufts-New England Medical Center, Boston MA
  • ,
  • Joseph Lau, MD

      Affiliations

    • Division of Clinical Care Research, Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies, Tufts-New England Medical Center, Boston MA
  • ,
  • Christopher H. Schmid, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Biostatistics Research Center, Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies, Boston MA
  • ,
  • Andrew S. Levey, MD

      Affiliations

    • Division of Nephrology, Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies, Tufts-New England Medical Center, Boston MA
  • ,
  • John B. Wong, MD

      Affiliations

    • Clinical Decision Making, Department of Medicine, Tufts-New England Medical Center, Boston MA.

Received 6 June 2007 ,Accepted 9 November 2007.

References 

  1. World Health Organization. Hepatitis C—Global prevalence (update). Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 1999;49:4–5December
  2. Fissell RB, Bragg-Gresham JL, Woods JD, et al. Patterns of hepatitis C prevalence and seroconversion in hemodialysis units from three continents: The DOPPS. Kidney Int. 2004;65:2335–2342
  3. Huraib S, al-Rashed R, Aldrees A, Aljefry M, Arif M, al-Faleh FA. High prevalence of and risk factors for hepatitis C in haemodialysis patients in Saudi Arabia: A need for new dialysis strategies. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 1995;10:470–474
  4. Fabrizi F, Martin P, Dixit V, Bunnapradist S, Dulai G. Meta-analysis: Effect of hepatitis C virus infection on mortality in dialysis. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2004;20:1271–1277
  5. Kalantar-Zadeh K, Kilpatrick RD, McAllister CJ, et al. Hepatitis C virus and death risk in hemodialysis patients. J Am Soc Nephrol. 2007;18:1584–1593
  6. Fabrizi F, Martin P, Dixit V, Bunnapradist S, Dulai G. Hepatitis C virus antibody status and survival after renal transplantation: Meta-analysis of observational studies. Am J Transplant. 2005;5:1452–1461
  7. Watanabe H, Saito T, Shinzawa H, et al. Spontaneous elimination of serum hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA in chronic HCV carriers: A population-based cohort study. J Med Virol. 2003;71:56–61
  8. Manns MP, McHutchison JG, Gordon SC, et al. Peginterferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin compared with interferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin for initial treatment of chronic hepatitis C: A randomised trial. Lancet. 2001;358:958–965
  9. Fried MW, Shiffman ML, Reddy KR, et al. Peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin for chronic hepatitis C virus infection. N Engl J Med. 2002;347:975–982
  10. Dalgard O. Follow-up studies of treatment for hepatitis C virus infection among injection drug users. Clin Infect Dis. 2005;40(suppl 5):S336–S338
  11. Marcellin P, Boyer N, Gervais A, et al. Long-term histologic improvement and loss of detectable intrahepatic HCV RNA in patients with chronic hepatitis C and sustained response to interferon-alpha therapy. Ann Intern Med. 1997;127:875–881
  12. Reichard O, Glaumann H, Fryden A, Norkrans G, Wejstal R, Weiland O. Long-term follow-up of chronic hepatitis C patients with sustained virological response to alpha-interferon. J Hepatol. 1999;30:783–787
  13. Yoshida H, Shiratori Y, Moriyama M, et al. Interferon therapy reduces the risk for hepatocellular carcinoma: National surveillance program of cirrhotic and noncirrhotic patients with chronic hepatitis C in Japan (IHIT Study Group. Inhibition of Hepatocarcinogenesis by Interferon Therapy). Ann Intern Med. 1999;131:174–181
  14. Bruno S, Battezzati PM, Bellati G, et al. Long-term beneficial effects in sustained responders to interferon-alfa therapy for chronic hepatitis C. J Hepatol. 2001;34:748–755
  15. Yoshida H, Arakawa Y, Sata M, et al. Interferon therapy prolonged life expectancy among chronic hepatitis C patients. Gastroenterology. 2002;123:483–491
  16. Fabrizi F, Dulai G, Dixit V, Bunnapradist S, Martin P. Meta-analysis: Interferon for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C in dialysis patients. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2003;18:1071–1081
  17. Russo MW, Goldsweig CD, Jacobson IM, Brown RS. Interferon monotherapy for dialysis patients with chronic hepatitis C: An analysis of the literature on efficacy and safety. Am J Gastroenterol. 2003;98:1610–1615
  18. Urbanek P, Tesar V, Prochazkova-Francisci E, Lachmanova J, Marecek Z, Svobodnik A. Treatment of early diagnosed HCV infection in hemodialyzed patients with interferon-alpha (Treatment of hepatitis C). Blood Purif. 2004;22:344–350
  19. Gursoy M, Gur G, Arslan H, Ozdemir N, Boyacioglu S. Interferon therapy in haemodialysis patients with acute hepatitis C virus infection and factors that predict response to treatment. J Viral Hepat. 2001;8:70–77
  20. Vogel W, Graziadei I, Umlauft F, et al. High-dose interferon-alpha2b treatment prevents chronicity in acute hepatitis C: A pilot study. Dig Dis Sci. 1996;41(suppl):S81–S85
  21. Sporea I, Popescu A, Sirli R, et al. Pegylated-interferon alpha 2a treatment for chronic hepatitis C in patients on chronic haemodialysis. World J Gastroenterol. 2006;12:4191–4194
  22. Russo MW, Ghalib R, Sigal S, Joshi V. Randomized trial of pegylated interferon alpha-2b monotherapy in haemodialysis patients with chronic hepatitis C. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2006;21:437–443
  23. Kokoglu OF, Ucmak H, Hosoglu S, et al. Efficacy and tolerability of pegylated-interferon alpha-2a in hemodialysis patients with chronic hepatitis C. J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2006;21:575–580
  24. Beld M, Sentjens R, Rebers S, et al. Performance of the New Bayer VERSANT HCV RNA 3.0 assay for quantitation of hepatitis C virus RNA in plasma and serum: Conversion to international units and comparison with the Roche COBAS Amplicor HCV Monitor, version 2.0, assay. J Clin Microbiol. 2002;40:788–793
  25. Konnick EQ, Erali M, Ashwood ER, Hillyard DR. Performance characteristics of the COBAS Amplicor Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Monitor, version 2.0, international unit assay and the National Genetics Institute HCV Superquant assay. J Clin Microbiol. 2002;40:768–773
  26. Pawlotsky JM. Use and interpretation of virological tests for hepatitis C. Hepatology. 2002;36(5 suppl):S65–S73
  27. Zeuzem S, Heathcote EJ, Shiffman ML, et al. Twelve weeks of follow-up is sufficient for the determination of sustained virologic response in patients treated with interferon alpha for chronic hepatitis C. J Hepatol. 2003;39:106–111
  28. Koenig P, Vogel W, Umlauft F, et al. Interferon treatment for chronic hepatitis C virus infection in uremic patients. Kidney Int. 1994;45:1507–1509
  29. McHutchison JG, Gordon SC, Schiff ER, et al. Interferon alfa-2b alone or in combination with ribavirin as initial treatment for chronic hepatitis C (Hepatitis Interventional Therapy Group). N Engl J Med. 1998;339:1485–1492
  30. Poynard T, Marcellin P, Lee SS, et al. Randomised trial of interferon alpha2b plus ribavirin for 48 weeks or for 24 weeks versus interferon alpha2b plus placebo for 48 weeks for treatment of chronic infection with hepatitis C virus (International Hepatitis Interventional Therapy Group (IHIT)). Lancet. 1998;352:1426–1432
  31. Huraib S, Iqbal A, Tanimu D, Abdullah A. Sustained virological and histological response with pretransplant interferon therapy in renal transplant patients with chronic viral hepatitis C. Am J Nephrol. 2001;21:435–440
  32. Campistol JM, Esforzado N, Martinez J, et al. Efficacy and tolerance of interferon-alpha(2b) in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus infection in haemodialysis patients (Pre- and post-renal transplantation assessment). Nephrol Dial Transplant. 1999;14:2704–2709
  33. Fernandez JL, Rendo P, del Pino N, Viola L. A double-blind controlled trial of recombinant interferon-alpha 2b in haemodialysis patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection and abnormal aminotransferase levels (Nephrologists’ Group for the Study of HCV infection). J Viral Hepat. 1997;4:113–119
  34. Benci A, Caremani M, Menchetti D, Sasdelli M, Giusti PB. Low-dose leukocyte interferon-alpha therapy in dialysed patients with chronic hepatitis C. Curr Med Res Opin. 1998;14:141–144
  35. Buargub M, El Huni S, Tagdi M. Tolerance and efficacy of interferon-alpha in hemodialysis patients in Tripoli. Saudi J Kidney Dis Transpl. 2006;17:338–343
  36. Casanovas-Taltavull T, Baliellas C, Benasco C, et al. Efficacy of interferon for chronic hepatitis C virus-related hepatitis in kidney transplant candidates on hemodialysis: Results after transplantation. Am J Gastroenterol. 2001;96:1170–1177
  37. Chan TM, Wu PC, Lau JY, Lok AS, Lai CL, Cheng IK. Interferon treatment for hepatitis C virus infection in patients on haemodialysis. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 1997;12:1414–1419
  38. Degos F, Pol S, Chaix ML, et al. The tolerance and efficacy of interferon-alpha in haemodialysis patients with HCV infection: A multicentre, prospective study. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2001;16:1017–1023
  39. Espinosa M, Rodriguez M, Martin-Malo A, et al. Interferon therapy in hemodialysis patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection induces a high rate of long-term sustained virological and biochemical response. Clin Nephrol. 2001;55:220–226
  40. Hanrotel C, Toupance O, Lavaud S, et al. Virological and histological responses to one year alpha-interferon-2a in hemodialyzed patients with chronic hepatitis C. Nephron. 2001;88:120–126
  41. Huraib S, Tanimu D, Romeh SA, et al. Interferon-alpha in chronic hepatitis C infection in dialysis patients. Am J Kidney Dis. 1999;34:55–60
  42. Izopet J, Rostaing L, Moussion F, et al. High rate of hepatitis C virus clearance in hemodialysis patients after interferon-alpha therapy. J Infect Dis. 1997;176:1614–1617
  43. Kamar N, Toupance O, Buchler M, et al. Evidence that clearance of hepatitis C virus RNA after alpha-interferon therapy in dialysis patients is sustained after renal transplantation. J Am Soc Nephrol. 2003;14:2092–2098
  44. Mousa DH, Abdalla AH, Al-Shoail G, Al-Sulaiman MH, Al-Hawas FA, Al-Khader AA. Alpha-interferon with ribavirin in the treatment of hemodialysis patients with hepatitis C. Transplant Proc. 2004;36:1831–1834
  45. Okuda K, Hayashi H, Yokozeki K, Kondo T, Kashima T, Irie Y. Interferon treatment for chronic hepatitis C in haemodialysis patients: Suggestions based on a small series. J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 1995;10:616–620
  46. Ozdemir FN, Akcay A, Sezer S, et al. A six-year follow-up after interferon-alpha monotherapy for chronic hepatitis C infection in hemodialysis patients. Ren Fail. 2004;26:583–588
  47. Pol S, Thiers V, Carnot F, et al. Efficacy and tolerance of alpha-2b interferon therapy on HCV infection of hemodialyzed patients. Kidney Int. 1995;47:1412–1418
  48. Raptopoulou-Gigi M, Spaia S, Garifallos A, et al. Interferon-alpha 2b treatment of chronic hepatitis C in haemodialysis patients. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 1995;10:1834–1837
  49. Rocha CM, Perez RM, Ferreira AP, et al. Efficacy and tolerance of interferon-alpha in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C in end-stage renal disease patients on hemodialysis. Liver Int. 2006;26:305–310
  50. Rendina M, Schena A, Castellaneta NM, et al. The treatment of chronic hepatitis C with peginterferon alfa-2a (40 kDa) plus ribavirin in haemodialysed patients awaiting renal transplant. J Hepatol. 2007;46:768–774
  51. Deltenre V, Canva F, Provot F, et al. Pegylated interferon and ribavirin in haemodialyzed patients with chronic hepatitis C: A prospective study. Hepatology. 2006;44(suppl):S329A
  52. Zeuzem S, Teuber G, Naumann U, et al. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of interferon alfa2a with and without amantadine as initial treatment for chronic hepatitis C. Hepatology. 2000;32:835–841
  53. Rostaing L, Chatelut E, Payen JL, et al. Pharmacokinetics of alphaIFN-2b in chronic hepatitis C virus patients undergoing chronic hemodialysis or with normal renal function: Clinical implications. J Am Soc Nephrol. 1998;9:2344–2348
  54. Jafar TH, Schmid CH, Landa M, et al. Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and progression of nondiabetic renal disease (A meta-analysis of patient-level data). Ann Intern Med. 2001;135:73–87
  55. Dickersin K, Min YI, Meinert CL. Factors influencing publication of research results (Follow-up of applications submitted to two institutional review boards). JAMA. 1992;267:374–378
  56. Terrin N, Schmid CH, Lau J. In an empirical evaluation of the funnel plot, researchers could not visually identify publication bias. J Clin Epidemiol. 2005;58:894–901
  57. Kasiske BL. Meta-analysis as a clinical tool in nephrology. Kidney Int. 1998;53:819–825

 Because an author of this manuscript is an editor for AJKD, the peer-review and decision-making processes were handled entirely by an Associate Editor (Beth M. Piraino, MD, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine) who served as Acting Editor-in-Chief. Details of the journal’s procedures for potential editor conflicts are given in the Editorial Policies section of the AJKD website.

PII: S0272-6386(07)01482-5

doi: 10.1053/j.ajkd.2007.11.003

American Journal of Kidney Diseases
Volume 51, Issue 2 , Pages 263-277 , February 2008