Search

Objectives: The aim of the study was to describe the 5-year follow-up of children who received peginterferon and ribavirin in a global, open-label study. Methods: A 5-year follow-up study of 107 children and adolescents ages 3 to 17 years with chronic hepatitis C virus infection who received peginterferon and ribavirin for 24 or 48 weeks. No drugs were administered during follow-up. Results: Ninety-four patients were enrolled in the long-term follow-up portion of the study;the median duration of follow-up was 287 weeks (range, 73-339). Of 63 patients with sustained virologic response who were enrolled, 54 completed 5 years of follow-up;none had relapse in the 5-year follow-up period. Significant decreases in height z scores were observed during treatment. The effect of treatment on height z score was larger in patients treated for 48 weeks compared with those treated for 24 weeks (mean change from baseline to the end of treatment was -0.13 [P < 0.001] and -0.44 [P < 0.001] in the 247 and 48-week treatment groups, respectively). Among patients treated for 24 weeks, full recovery of height z scores to baseline was observed by 1 year of follow-up, whereas only partial recovery was observed during 5 years of follow-up in patients treated for 48 weeks (mean change from baseline to the final follow-up visit was -0.16 (P=NS) and 0.32 (P < 0.05) in the 24- and 48-week treatment groups, respectively). Similar patterns were observed for weight and body mass index z scores. Conclusions: Impairment of growth should be considered when assessing the risk-benefit profile of peginterferon/ribavirin therapy in children with hepatitis C virus infection. In deciding to treat children with chronic hepatitis C virus, considerations should include both deferring treatment in patients during optimal growth periods, and the possibility that interferon free regimens may be available to children in the next 5 to 10 years.

Pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN) alfa-2b plus ribavirin (RBV) is the standard of care for adults with chronic hepatitis C but was not approved for the treatment of children at the time of this study. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of PEG-IFN alfa-2b plus RBV in children.Children and adolescents ages 3-17 years were treated with PEG-IFN alfa-2b (60microg/m(2)/week) plus RBV (15mg/kg/day). The duration of therapy was 24 weeks for genotype (G) 2 and G3 patients with low viral load (600,000IU/ml) and 48 weeks for G1, G4, and G3 with high viral load (or=600,000IU/ml). The primary end point was sustained virologic response (SVR), defined as undetectable hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA 24 weeks after completion of therapy.SVR was attained by 70 (65%) children. Genotype was the main predictor of response: G1, 53%; G2/3, 93%; G4, 80%. SVRs were similar in younger and older children. Baseline viral load was the main predictor of response in the G1 cohort. No new safety signals were identified, and adverse events (AEs) were generally mild or moderate in severity. Dose was modified because of AEs in 25% of children; 1 child discontinued because of an AE (thrombocytopenia). No serious AEs related to study drugs were reported.Therapy with PEG-IFN alfa-2b plus RBV in children and adolescents with chronic hepatitis C offers favorable efficacy, reduced injection frequency, and an acceptable safety profile.

Hepatoxicity of isoniazid, mainly in association with rifampin, is a rare secondary effect of tuberculostatic treatment. In the United States, it accounts for 0.2% of all pediatric orthotropic liver transplant, and 14% of transplants for drug hepatotoxicity. We report the case of a 10 year-old patient who presented with acute liver failure requiring orthotropic liver transplant after forty days of tuberculostatic treatment with isoniazid, rifampin and pyrazinamide.

Rifaximin is an antibiotic recently approved for the treatment of hepatic encephalopathy in adults. In children more than 12 year-old, it has been approved for travelers' diarrhea and it is also widely used in inflammatory bowel disease. We report, to our knowledge, the first case of a pediatric patient who received rifaximin for hepatic encephalopathy with good clinical outcome.

The natural history of pediatric nonalcoholic steatohepatitis is still unknown; however, there are differences between adult and pediatric presentation. Apoptosis may play an important role in pathophysiologic pathways involved in liver damage and progression. Our aim was to detect early apoptosis markers, activated caspase-3 and cleaved cytokeratin-18, in hepatocytes and to correlate their presence with clinical, serologic, and histologic characteristics in pediatric nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. Twenty-five pediatric nonalcoholic steatohepatitis liver biopsies were evaluated by immunohistochemistry for presence of activated caspase-3 and cleaved cytokeratin-18. Biopsy specimens were semiquantitatively graded for activity (steatosis, inflammation, and ballooning) and fibrosis. Records were reviewed for serum aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, cholesterol, triglycerides, and body mass index, which was elevated in 92% of cases. Serum aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase were elevated in 32% and 68% of cases, respectively. Sixty percent of biopsies exhibited lobular steatosis grade 3, 84% lobular inflammatory activity grade 1, 72% ballooning grade 1, and 76% fibrosis stage 3. Cleaved cytokeratin-18 was associated with milder fibrosis (P = .02) and inflammation (P = .07), although there was no association with steatosis grade. Activated caspase-3 detection was also associated with low inflammatory grade (P = .03) but not with fibrosis and steatosis. This study reveals interesting differential features concerning nonalcoholic steatohepatitis histologic characteristics and apoptosis markers compared with adult cases. Because, in this pediatric series, apoptosis seemed to be an early event in the cascade of liver injury steps, it would be useful to consider caspase inhibitors as potential therapeutic strategies to prevent liver damage progression.