Pegylated interferon alfa and ribavirin for children with chronic hepatitis C

Table 1 Characteristics and results for non-responders and those who achieved a sustained virologic response n (%)

	Non-responders (n = 10)	Gained SVR (n = 20)	P value
Male	6 (60)	11 (55)	1.00
Age ≥ 12 yr	7 (70)	14 (70)	1.00
Peginterferon alfa-2a treatment	1 (10)	9 (45)	0.1
Genotype 1	10 (100)	13 (65)	0.065
WBC (cells/μL)1	3422.22 ± 839.47	3296.500 ± 834.57	0.39
HGB (g/L)1	110.99 ± 9.1	110.26 ± 10	0.07
ALT (U/L)1	52.33 ± 16.42	77.85 ± 41.98	0.08
AST (U/L)1	43.90 ± 19.31	55.65 ± 31.39	0.54
Weight (kg)1	48.66 ± 23.76	51.62 ± 21.96	0.66
Median viral load	747 000	332 500	0.49

¹Data are presented mean ± SD. SVR: Sustained virologic response; WBC: White blood cells; HGB: Hemoglobin level; ALT: Alanine aminotransferase; AST: Aspartate aminotransferase.

Table 2 Comparison of adverse reactions between those receiving peginterferon-alfa 2a and those receiving peginterferon-alfa 2b

Adverse reaction	Peginterferon-alfa 2a (n = 10)	Peginterferon-alfa 2b (n = 20)	Total
None	0	5	5
Flu-like symptoms	4	5	9
Weight loss	1	3	4
Hair loss	1	3	4
Headache	2	2	4
Aseptic meningitis	1	0	1
GI symptoms	1	4	5
Oral aphthae	1	0	1
Pruritus	1	0	1
Fat necrosis	1	1	2
Sleep disturbance	2	0	2
Lymphadenopathy	1	0	1
Absolute neutropenia	0	2	2
Anemia (HGB < 110 g/L)	2	4	6
Thrombocytopenia (platelets < 100 000 cells/μL)	1	0	1
Direct hyperbilirubinemia (mg/dL)	1	0	1
Indirect hyperbilirubinemia (mg/dL)	0	1	1

GI: Gastrointestinal; HGB: Hemoglobin level.