Depression and HCV Therapy

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Depression and HCV Therapy

Depression and HCV Therapy

Depression and HCV Therapy

Alan Franciscus, Editor-in-Chief

It is well-known that pegylated interferon plus ribavirin can induce or exacerbate depressive symptoms that can affect adherence, early treatment discontinuation and ultimately lower treatment outcomes. A recently published study is adding to the body of knowledge on the association between HCV treatment outcome and depression associated with HCV therapy.1Data from 394 patients (191 African Americans, 203 Caucasians) was analyzed. Depression was defined as a score of >23 on the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale. Depression scores were taken before treatment, at weeks 4, 12, and 24 of treatment, and 24 weeks after treatment ended. Baseline social support was measured using the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS) Social Support Survey. The association between patient characteristics prior to treatment and the incidence of depression was measured.The study found that prior to treatment 47 (12%)

of the participants had CES-D scores of 23. Analyses indicated that several patient characteristics were associated with baseline depression, including lower social support (P<0.0001). p="0.02)" p="0.79)" p="0.04)." p="0.008)." p="0.02)" p="0.16).">

http://www.hcvadvocate.org/news/newsLetter/2009/advocate1109.html#5

http://Hepatitis Cnewdrugs.blogspot.com/2010/05/depression-and-hcv-therapy.html