TY - JOUR A1 - Heidrich, Benjamin A1 - Cordes, Hans-Jörg A1 - Klinker, Hartwig A1 - Möller, Bernd A1 - Naumann, Uwe A1 - Rössle, Martin A1 - Kraus, Michael R. A1 - Böker, Klaus H. A1 - Roggel, Christoph A1 - Schuchmann, Marcus A1 - Stoehr, Albrecht A1 - Trein, Andreas A1 - Hardtke, Svenja A1 - Gonnermann, Andrea A1 - Koch, Armin A1 - Wedemeyer, Heiner A1 - Manns, Michael P. A1 - Cornberg, Markus T1 - Treatment Extension of Pegylated Interferon Alpha and Ribavirin Does Not Improve SVR in Patients with Genotypes 2/3 without Rapid Virological Response (OPTEX Trial): A Prospective, Randomized, Two-Arm, Multicentre Phase IV Clinical Trial JF - PLoS ONE N2 - Although sofosbuvir has been approved for patients with genotypes 2/3 (G2/3), many parts of the world still consider pegylated Interferon alpha (P) and ribavirin (R) as standard of care for G2/3. Patients with rapid virological response (RVR) show response rates >80%. However, SVR (sustained virological response) in non-RVR patients is not satisfactory. Longer treatment duration may be required but evidence from prospective trials are lacking. A total of 1006 chronic HCV genotype 2/3 patients treated with P/R were recruited into a German HepNet multicenter screening registry. Of those, only 226 patients were still HCV RNA positive at week 4 (non-RVR). Non-RVR patients with ongoing response after 24 weeks P-2b/R qualified for OPTEX, a randomized trial investigating treatment extension of additional 24 weeks (total 48 weeks, Group A) or additional 12 weeks (total 36 weeks, group B) of 1.5 \(\mu\)g/kg P-2b and 800-1400 mg R. Due to the low number of patients without RVR, the number of 150 anticipated study patients was not met and only 99 non-RVR patients (n=50 Group A, n=49 Group B) could be enrolled into the OPTEX trial. Baseline factors did not differ between groups. Sixteen patients had G2 and 83 patients G3. Based on the ITT (intention-to-treat) analysis, 68% [55%; 81%] in Group A and 57% [43%; 71%] in Group B achieved SVR (p=0.31). The primary endpoint of better SVR rates in Group A compared to a historical control group (SVR 70%) was not met. In conclusion, approximately 23% of G2/3 patients did not achieve RVR in a real world setting. However, subsequent recruitment in a treatment-extension study was difficult. Prolonged therapy beyond 24 weeks did not result in higher SVR compared to a historical control group. KW - chronic hepatitis C KW - peginterferon alpha-2b KW - infection KW - sofosbuvir KW - therapy KW - HCV genotype 2 Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-151811 VL - 10 IS - 6 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Schlevogt, Bernhard A1 - Boeker, Klaus H. W. A1 - Mauss, Stefan A1 - Klinker, Hartwig A1 - Heyne, Renate A1 - Link, Ralph A1 - Simon, Karl-Georg A1 - Sarrazin, Christoph A1 - Serfert, Yvonne A1 - Manns, Michael P. A1 - Wedemeyer, Heiner T1 - Weight gain after interferon-free treatment of chronic hepatitis C — results from the German Hepatitis C-Registry (DHC-R) JF - Biomedicines N2 - Chronic hepatitis C can be treated very effectively with direct-acting antivirals (DAA) with only minor side effects compared to an interferon-containing treatment regimen. The significance of metabolic comorbidities after HCV cure is not well defined. This study aims to investigate short- and long-term weight change of patients receiving interferon-free antiviral treatment for chronic hepatitis C. The German Hepatitis C-registry (DHC-R) is a national multicenter real-world cohort. A total of 5111 patients were followed prospectively after DAA treatment for up to 3 years. Weight change compared to baseline was analyzed at end of treatment and at years 1, 2, and 3 after completion of antiviral therapy. Regression analysis was performed to identify baseline predictors for weight change. While there was no relevant mean weight change (−0.2 kg, SD 4.3 kg) at the end of antiviral treatment, weight started to increase during long-term follow-up reaching +1.7 kg (SD 8.0 kg, p < 0.001) compared to baseline at 3 years (follow-up year 3, FU3) after completion of antiviral therapy. 48%, 31%, and 22% of patients had a weight gain greater than 1, 3, and 5 kg at FU3, respectively. During follow-up, a body mass index (BMI) <30 proved to be the only consistent predictor for weight gain. DAA treatment is followed by a substantial weight gain (+3 kg or more) in one-third of the patients during long-term follow-up. Non-obese patients seemed to be most vulnerable to weight gain. The body compartment involved in weight gain as well as the mechanism of weight gain remain to be elucidated. KW - chronic hepatitis C KW - direct-acting antivirals KW - interferon-free KW - HCV cure KW - weight gain KW - German Hepatitis C-Registry Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-248476 SN - 2227-9059 VL - 9 IS - 10 ER -