As
reported in the March 2007 Journal of Viral Hepatitis, researchers with
the HCV National Register Steering Group in the United Kingdom assessed whether
HCV genotype might influence the clinical outcome of infection.
They
analyzed serum samples from 749 individuals enrolled in the UK HCV National Register,
and extracted clinical outcome information from the database.
Logistic
regression analysis was used to investigate the effect of HCV genotype on viral
clearance, comparing HCV RNA positive and negative subjects. The same method was
used to investigate whether HCV genotype was associated with histological stage
of liver disease.
Results
•
The prevalence of HCV
genotype 1 among patients who spontaneously cleared the virus was 69%, compared
with 51% among those who remained HCV RNA positive.
•
Patients with genotype
1 were more likely to be HCV RNA negative than those with other genotypes (OR
0.47; P = 0.003).
•
Among subjects with
continued detectable HCV RNA, genotype 1 patients were more likely to have histological
scores above the median (OR 2.03; P = 0.03).
Conclusion
"HCV
[geno]type 1 infection was more often HCV RNA negative," the authors concluded,
"suggesting that spontaneous clearance may occur more commonly with this
type." However, they added, "Among the [HCV] RNA-positive infections,
[geno]type 1 infection may be more aggressive than [geno]types 2/3.
03/30/07
References H
E Harris, K P Eldridge, S Harbour, and others (HCV National Register Steering
Group). Does the clinical outcome of hepatitis C infection vary with the infecting
hepatitis C virus type? Journal of Viral Hepatitis 14(3): 213-220. March
2007.
