Case Report
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World J Gastroenterol. Apr 28, 2011; 17(16): 2155-2158
Published online Apr 28, 2011. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v17.i16.2155
Pure red cell aplasia caused by pegylated interferon-α-2a plus ribavirin in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C
Cheng-Shyong Chang, Sheng-Lei Yan, Hsuan-Yu Lin, Fu-Lien Yu, Chien-Yu Tsai
Cheng-Shyong Chang, Hsuan-Yu Lin, Fu-Lien Yu, Chien-Yu Tsai, Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua City 500, Taiwan, China
Sheng-Lei Yan, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Chang-Bing Show Chwan Memorial Hospital, Changuha County 505, Taiwan, China
Sheng-Lei Yan, Department and Graduate Program of Bioindustrial Technology, Dayeh University, Changhua County 51591, Taiwan, China
Fu-Lien Yu, Graduate Institute of Nursing, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung City 40201, Taiwan, China
Author contributions: Chang CS substantial contributions to conception and design; Yan SL draft the article and final approval of the version; Lin HY revise it critically for important intellectual content; Yu FL and Tsai CY help acquisition and interpretation of data.
Correspondence to: Sheng-Lei Yan, MD, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Chang-Bing Show Chwan Memorial Hospital, No 6, Lu-Gong Rd., Lugang Township, Changhua County 505, Taiwan, China. yslcsmc@yahoo.com
Telephone: +886-4-7813888 Fax: +886-4-7812401
Received: December 19, 2010
Revised: January 18, 2011
Accepted: January 25, 2011
Published online: April 28, 2011
Abstract

Pure red cell aplasia (PRCA) is a rare hematological disorder which is characterized by severe anemia, reticulocytopenia and almost complete absence of erythroid precursors in bone marrow. The pathophysiology of PRCA may be congenital or acquired. To our knowledge, there is only one case report in the English literature of PRCA after pegylated interferon combination therapy for chronic hepatitis C. We report a second case of PRCA after pegylated interferon combination treatment for chronic hepatitis C. The diagnosis of PRCA was confirmed by the typical findings of bone marrow biopsy. The possible etiologies of our case are also discussed in this paper.

Keywords: Chronic hepatitis C, Pegylated interferon-α-2a, Pure red cell aplasia, Ribavirin