Rapid Communication
Copyright ©2008 The WJG Press and Baishideng. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. May 21, 2008; 14(19): 3038-3043
Published online May 21, 2008. doi: 10.3748/wjg.14.3038
Short-term intravenous interferon therapy for chronic hepatitis B
Hiroaki Okushin, Toru Ohnishi, Kazuhiko Morii, Koichi Uesaka, Shiro Yuasa
Hiroaki Okushin, Toru Ohnishi, Kazuhiko Morii, Koichi Uesaka, Shiro Yuasa, Department of Internal Medicine, Himeji Red Cross Hospital, Hyogo, Japan
Correspondence to: Hiroaki Okushin, MD, Department of Internal Medicine, Himeji Red Cross Hospital, 1-12-1 Shimoteno, Himeji-shi, Hyogo 670-8540, Japan. hiroaki_okushin@hotmail.co.jp
Telephone: +81-79-2942251
Fax: +81-79-2964050
Received: October 23, 2007
Revised: March 25, 2008
Published online: May 21, 2008
Abstract

AIM: To investigate the therapeutic efficacy of short-term, multiple daily dosing of intravenous interferon (IFN) in patients with hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive chronic hepatitis B.

METHODS: IFN-β was intravenously administered at a total dose of 102 million international units (MIU) over a period of 28 d in 26 patients positive for HBeAg and HBV-DNA. IFN-beta was administered at doses of 2 MIU and 1 MIU on d 1, 3 MIU twice daily from d 2 to d 7, and 1 MIU thrice daily from d 8 to d 28. Patients were followed up for 24 wk after the end of treatment.

RESULTS: Six months after the end of the treatment, loss of HBV-DNA occurred in 13 (50.0%) of the 26 patients, loss of HBeAg in 9 (34.6%), development of anti-HBe in 10 (38.5%), HBeAg seroconversion in 8 (30.8%), and normalization of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels in 11 (42.0%).

CONCLUSION: This 4-wk long IFN-β therapy, which was much shorter than conventional therapy lasting 12 wk or even more than 1 year, produced therapeutic effects similar to those achieved by IFN-α or pegylated-IFN-α (peg-IFN). Fewer adverse effects, greater efficacy, and a shorter treatment period led to an improvement in patients’ quality of life. IFN-β is administered intravenously, whereas IFN-α is administered intramuscularly or subcutaneously. Because both interferons are known to bind to an identical receptor and exert antiviral effects through intracellular signal transduction, the excellent results of IFN-β found in this study may be attributed to the multiple doses allowed by the intravenous route.

Keywords: Chronic hepatitis B; Hepatitis B e antigen; Hepatitis B virus; Interferon beta; Multiple daily dosing; Short-term treatment; Intravenous injection