Extended duration of treatment with peginterferon alfa-2a in patients with chronic hepatitis B, HBeAg-negative and E genotype: A retrospective analysis

An alternative approach in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) with pegylated (PEG)-interferon (IFN) is the prolonged course to 96 weeks of therapy, with higher sustained response (SR) than patients treated for 48 weeks. This result was confirmed in patients with CHB and D genotype, while no data are currently available about the prolonged course of PEG-IFN in E genotype. This retrospective analysis reported the role of different treatment duration of PEG-IFN on the SR in patients affected by CHB and E genotype. A total of 86 subjects with CHB and E genotype were considered in this analysis; different treatment durations were: 48 weeks (control group, 41 patients), 72 weeks (25 patients), and 96 weeks (19 patients). Treatment effectiveness was evaluated with sustained response (SR) and serological response. SR was significantly higher in patients who underwent PEG-IFN for 96 weeks in comparison to 48 weeks: 14.6% versus 26.3% (P = 0.016). HBsAg loss rate was 5.3% in patients treated for 96 weeks and 2.4% in the control group. In the multivariate analysis only the 72 and 96 weeks of therapy (OR 2.335, 95% CI 1.550-4.578; P = 0.020 and (OR 3.890, 95% CI 1.991-10.961; P = 0003) were predictive of SR. The extended duration of PEG-IFN course in patients with CHB and genotype E is a promising approach to increase the SR and HBsAg clearance.