Table 1.
Baseline characteristics
| PEG-IFN + RBV – 24 weeks (n = 90) | PEG-IFN + RBV – 48 weeks (n = 219) | Total (n = 309) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demography | |||
| Sex* | |||
| Male | 59 (65.6) | 119 (54.3) | 178 (57.6) |
| Female | 31 (34.4) | 100 (45.7) | 131 (42.4) |
| Age† (years) | 38.6 ± 10.3 | 42.7 ± 12.5 | 41.5 ± 12.1 |
| Weight† (kg) | 77.2 ± 15.4 | 75.0 ± 13.9 | 75.7 ± 14.4 |
| BMI† (kg/m2) | 25.6 ± 4.6 | 25.2 ± 4.0 | 25.3 ± 4.2 |
| Virological/biochemical parameters | |||
| Genotype* | |||
| 1 | 6 (6.7) | 188 (86.2) | 194 (63.0) |
| 2 | 14 (15.6) | 1 (0.5) | 15 (4.9) |
| 3 | 70 (77.8) | 17 (7.8) | 87 (28.2) |
| Other§ | 0 (0.0) | 12 (5.5) | 13 (3.9) |
| HCV-RNA‡ (103IU/mL) | 1188 (2–12 300) | 1023 (1–33 333) | 1071 (1–33 333) |
| ALT† (U/L) | 73.2 ± 55.6 (n = 89) | 56.3 ± 37.5 (n = 216) | 61.3 ± 44.1 (n = 305) |
| Histology | n = 75 | n = 182 | n = 257 |
| Cirrhosis* | 7 (9.3) | 14 (7.7) | 21 (8.2) |
| Total HAI score† | 5.5 ± 3.3 (n = 31) | 5.6 ± 3.9 (n = 89) | 5.6 ± 3.7 (n = 120) |
| Mode of HCV infection | |||
| Transfusion* | 5 (5.6) | 40 (18.3) | 45 (14.6) |
| Intravenous drug use* | 40 (44.4) | 51 (23.3) | 91 (29.4) |
| Percutan./sexual exp.* | 4 (4.4) | 11 (5.0) | 15 (4.9) |
| Unknown* | 35 (38.9) | 103 (47.0) | 138 (44.7) |
| Other* | 6 (6.7) | 14 (6.4) | 20 (6.5) |
*
n (%);
†
mean ± standard deviation;
‡
mean (min–max).
§
In one further patient in the 48-week group genotype was missing.