View clinical trials related to Hepatitis A.
Filter by:We hypothesize that atorvastatin will decrease HCV viral load in patients taking the medication. Cholesterol is needed for HCV virion production. Cell culture studies have shown that atorvastatin (an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor) decreases HCV viral replication. As atorvastatin has been proven to decrease heart attack and stroke in patients with high cholesterol, this medication is indicated for the treatment of elevated cholesterol in at risk individuals. Therefore we propose to study the effect atorvastatin has on the viral load of patients initiated on atorvastatin therapy for their elevated cholesterol.
Iron excess is increasingly regarded as an important cofactor in the morbidity attributed to many disorders. Assessment of body iron stores by measurement of serum ferritin concentrations has poor specificity and the most reliable method is histological or biochemical assessment from a liver biopsy. Because liver biopsy is an invasive procedure, imaging methods have been developed to detect and quantify hepatic iron content. The aim of the study is to use a simplified magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique to quantify simultaneously iron and fat contents in the liver and to compare the results to the quantification obtained biochemically.
Chronic viral hepatitis C is a frequent liver disease. It is associated with variable degree of hepatic fibrosis. To date, liver histology is still regarded as the gold standard to detect, diagnose and quantify liver fibrosis. This requires to perform a liver biopsy. Severe complications are associated to this procedure in 0.01 to 0.1% of cases. Because of this, the repetition of the biopsy to evaluate the progression of the disease or the response to treatment poses ethical questions. Also, liver biopsy only explore a minimal portion of the liver and liver fibrosis, which is not homogeneous, may be under- or over-estimated. To avoid risks linked to invasive technique and sampling errors associated to liver biopsy, efforts are being made to develop non-invasive technology to detect and quantitate liver fibrosis. In this study we will perform in patients with chronic hepatitis C, serum tests, fibroscan (elastography of liver parenchyma determined by ultra-sounds), and elastography of liver parenchyma by MRI. This study will allow - to determine whether non-invasive tests effectively measure liver fibrosis - to compare each non-invase test with results of liver biopsy - to determine whether a non-invasive test or a combination of non invasive tests may be used to accurately evaluate liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C.
Although injection drug users (IDUs) account for over 70% of new cases of HCV infection/year, there is no consensus on how to approach their medical care. In some Canadian centres, patients must be free of recreational drug use for as long as 6 months before being considered for HCV therapy. This is not consistent with current North American guidelines. Over the past 5 years, we have developed a successful program for the treatment of HIV infection in this population, based on a multi-disciplinary comprehensive program including directly observed therapy (DOT). Even though the duration of therapy for HCV is shorter than for HIV (as little as 6 months vs. life-long), we must address issues of administration of a weekly injection (interferon), twice daily pills (ribavirin) and the risk of significant side effects (including anxiety and depression) to successfully expand our program to treat this disease. Further, it may be that even if the program is successful, its benefits will be negated by HCV re-infection due to continued risk behaviors for its transmission.
The purpose of this clinical research study is to learn if the study drug entecavir will prevent the recurrence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) in participants who receive an orthotopic liver transplant (OLT) due to HBV infection.
This 4-arm study will compare the efficacy and safety of PEGASYS induction and maintenance dosing, versus standard fixed dosing in combination with Copegus, and the efficacy and safety of higher dose versus standard dose Copegus in combination with PEGASYS. Patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) genotype 1 infection of high viral titer, and baseline body weight ≥85 kg, will be randomized to one of 4 groups, to receive one of the following: a) PEGASYS 180 µg subcutaneously (sc) weekly plus Copegus 1200 mg orally (po) daily; b) PEGASYS 180 µg sc weekly plus Copegus 1400-1600 mg po daily; c)PEGASYS 360 µg sc weekly (induction) followed by 180 µg sc weekly (maintenance) plus Copegus 1200 mg po daily; or d) PEGASYS 360 µg sc weekly (induction) followed by 180 µg sc weekly (maintenance) plus Copegus 1400-1600 mg po daily. Following 48 weeks treatment, there will be a 24-week period of treatment-free follow-up. The anticipated time on study treatment is 3-12 months, and the target sample size is 500+ individuals.
Entecavir, 0.5 mg daily, will have clinical efficacy (assessed as an undetectable hepatitis B DNA, <300 copies/mL, by Roche Comprehensive Bio-Analytical System Amplicor polymerase chain reaction assay) that is comparable (noninferior) and potentially superior to lamivudine, 100 mg once daily, in adults with hepatitis B e antigen-negative chronic hepatitis B virus infection.
The purpose of this study is to determine whether a 10-day course of therapy with orally administered VCH-759 given at 400-mg, 600-mg or 800-mg three times daily can effectively reduce the amount of circulating virus (i.e., viral load) in patients with early-stage chronic hepatitis C-infection. This study will also evaluate the safety and tolerability of treatment with VCH-759. Blood samples will also be taken to measure the levels of VCH-759 present in plasma at various time points during the treatment period.
The purpose of this study is to prospectively assess the long-term outcomes (benefits and risks) associated with entecavir (ETV) therapy as compared to other antivirals approved for the treatment of chronic HBV infection. For the China substudy, patients randomized to entecavir will have safety and efficacy assessments performed during the first year of the study.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy (and safety) of antiviral therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis C after liver transplantation. The only approved drugs for treatment of hepatitis C are pegylated interferon and ribavirin.