Search

Interferon alpha (IFN) is the most effective drug in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B. This article presents the results of IFN therapy and 28-month follow-up.193 Caucasian children (130 boys and 63 girls) aged 1.5-17 years were treated with IFN for 20 weeks (3.0 MIU 3 times a week). They were examined at baseline (period 0), after 6 weeks (period 1), 12 weeks (period 2), 20 weeks (period 3), 6 months (period 4), 12 months (period 5), 18 months (period 6), and 24 months (period 7).HBcAg elimination drom period 3 was: 29.6%, 35.2%, 45.4%, 58.3%, in period 7 63.9% (significantly higher in girls). Significant positive correlations were found in several periods between IFN/m2 and HBeAg, HBsAg elimination, HBeAb, HBsAb presence and negatie correlations between IFN/m2 and ALT activity. ALT activity significantly decreased in girls between periods 0-3, in boys between 0-3 and 4-6. Significant positive correlations between ALT-0 and HBeAg, HBsAg elimination, HBeAb, HBsAb presence was seen in several periods, more frequently in girls. IFN transiently decreased Hb, leukocytes, and thrombocytes, especially in boys. No relationship was found between IFN therapy and bilirubin, protein, albumin and gammaglobulin concentrations. The prothrombin index increased after 6 months of IFN therapy in girls.The efficacy of IFN therapy is clearer with longer observation, especially in girls. A relationship was found between IFN dose and HBeAg/HbeAb and HBsAg/HBsAb seroconversion. IFN had a transient negative effect on the peripheral blood picture.

The occurrence of various side effects in patients treated with interferon alpha has attracted more attention to the manifestation of autoantibodies. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the side effects of interferon in children suffering from chronic hepatitis B by detecting six autoantibodies.Autoantibodies were examined in 76 children (55 boys and 21 girls) aged 2-16 years, treated with interferon-alpha 3 MU 3 times weekly for 20 weeks. They were tested before treatment (exam I) and after its conclusion (exam II). SMAs were determined by indirect immunofluorescence (Euroimmuno reagents), while ANA, AMA M2, GPC, TPO and ATG were measured by EIA (Biomedica reagents).No statistically significant differences were found between the total number of patients with autoantibodies in examination I and examination II. A comparison of the frequency of presence or absence of autoantibodies in the same patients in exams I and II showed significantly more frequent disappearance of GPC in exam II than appearance (p0.00005). This was also observed in the case of TPO (p=0.320). In relation to ANA, SMA, AMA M2 and ATG these differences were not significant.INF-alpha does not induce autoantibody formation in children with chronic hepatitis B. Our results suggest that IFN-alpha may inhibit the formation of some autoantibodies.