DOES INSULIN RESISTANCE IMPAIR THE VIROLOGICAL RESPONSE TO PEGINTERFERON/RIBAVIRIN IN CHRONIC HEPATITIS C GENOTYPE 3 PATIENTS?

DOES INSULIN RESISTANCE IMPAIR THE VIROLOGICAL RESPONSE TO PEGINTERFERON/RIBAVIRIN IN CHRONIC HEPATITIS C GENOTYPE 3 PATIENTS?

Arquivos de Gastroenterologia, June 2018

30043870

Marcela Pezzoto Laurito, Giovanni Faria Silva, Hugo Cheinquer, Rajani Sharma, Elizabeth Verna, Edison Roberto Parise

Insulin resistance and diabetes mellitus are common extrahepatic manifestations of chronic hepatitis C (HCV). Insulin resistance assessed by HOMA-IR is associated with low rates of sustained virological response, especially in HCV genotype 1 positive patients treated with peginterferon/ribavirin. The effect of insulin resistance on sustained virologic response in HCV genotype 3 positive patients who were treated with peginterferon/ribavirin still remains unclear. To evaluate the impact of insulin resistance on sustained virological response in HCV genotype 3 patients treated with peginterferon/ribavirin. A retrospective multicenter study was performed to evaluate the impact of insulin resistance on sustained virological response in non-diabetic HCV genotype 3 positive patients treated with peginterferon and ribavirin. A total of 200 HCV genotype 3 positive patients were enrolled in the study. All patients were non-diabetic. Each patient had a HOMA-IR value measured before the initiation of HCV treatment with peginterferon/ribavirin. The treatment duration was at least 24 weeks. The HOMA-IR cut-off was defined in the study as ≥2.5 due to the coefficient of correlation with sustained virological response of 0.202 (P=0.004). Univariate analysis showed that age, aspartate aminotransferase, platelets, stage of fibrosis and HOMA-IR were predictors of sustained virological response. However multivariate analysis showed advanced fibrosis [OR=2.01 (95%CI: 0.986-4.119) P=0.05] and age [OR=1.06 (95%CI: 1.022-1.110) P=0.002] as negative predictors of sustained virological response. In this retrospective multicenter study of non-diabetic HCV genotype 3 positive patients, insulin resistance was not associated with the sustained virological response in patients who were treated with peginterferon/ribavirin.