Citation Information :
Rahman S, Al-Mahtab M, Ahmed F, Fazal Karim M, Dalil Uddin M. Ribavirin as a Therapeutic Modality in Patients with Severe Acute Hepatitis E. Euroasian J Hepatogastroenterol 2013; 3 (1):39-41.
Background: With the postulation that ribavirin, an antiviral
agent, can modulate the clinical course of severe acute hepatitis
due to hepatitis E virus (HEV), a clinical trial was conducted in
patients with acute hepatitis E.
Materials and methods: A total of 24 patients with severe acute
hepatitis E were enrolled in this study. Ribavirin was given at a
dose of 400 mg, twice a day for 28 days. The clinical course of
the disease was assessed on a regular basis.
Results: Out of 24 patients in this cohort, three patients were
lost during follow-up and their prognosis remains unknown.
A total of six patients died during follow-up. The rest 15 patients
showed improvement of their pathological conditions during
observation period.
Conclusion: Although preliminary, this study indicates that more
information is required about beneficial and detrimental effects
of ribavirin in patients with severe acute hepatitis E. This study
inspired optimism that a randomized-controlled trial of ribavirin
should be adopted in severe acute hepatitis E to develop proper
in sights in this regard.
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