Regression of esophageal varices and splenomegaly in two patients with hepatitis-C-related liver cirrhosis after interferon and ribavirin combination therapy

Some recent studies have found regression of liver cirrhosis after antiviral therapy in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related liver cirrhosis, but there have been no reports of complete regression of esophageal varices after interferon/peg-interferon and ribavirin combination therapy. We des...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Soon Jae Lee, Yoo-Kyung Cho, Soo-Young Na, Eun Kwang Choi, Sun Jin Boo, Seung Uk Jeong, Hyung Joo Song, Heung Up Kim, Bong Soo Kim, Byung-Cheol Song
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Korean Association for the Study of the Liver 2016-09-01
Series:Clinical and Molecular Hepatology
Subjects:
Online Access:http://e-cmh.org/upload/pdf/cmh-2015-0050.pdf
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Summary:Some recent studies have found regression of liver cirrhosis after antiviral therapy in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related liver cirrhosis, but there have been no reports of complete regression of esophageal varices after interferon/peg-interferon and ribavirin combination therapy. We describe two cases of complete regression of esophageal varices and splenomegaly after interferon-alpha and ribavirin combination therapy in patients with HCV-related liver cirrhosis. Esophageal varices and splenomegaly regressed after 3 and 8 years of sustained virologic responses in cases 1 and 2, respectively. To our knowledge, this is the first study demonstrating that complications of liver cirrhosis, such as esophageal varices and splenomegaly, can regress after antiviral therapy in patients with HCV-related liver cirrhosis.
ISSN:2287-2728
2287-285X