Table 2.

Summary of the most important studies on the effect of iron depletion by phlebotomy on the response to IFN therapy in chronic hepatitis C virus infection

Author [ref]	Number of patients	Characteristics	Results
(a) Iron depletion before IFN therapy
Piperno et al. [41]	16	8 IFN NR, 8 naïve	Iron depletion decreased ALT levels but did not improve SVR to IFN
Herrera [46]	28	28 IFN NR	No patient achieved an SVR
Guyader et al. [53]	16	16 IFN NR	Despite a significant effect on serum ALT levels, no effect on viremia was observed
Tsai et al. [54]	20	20 IFN NR	IFN retreatment preceded by iron depletion produced a 15% of SBR and SVR
Di Bisceglie et al. [55]	96	96 IFN NR	No patient achieved an SVR
Fargion et al. [56]	114	114 naïve	Iron removal by phlebotomy improved the rate of SVR to IFN
Carlo et al. [57]	83	83 IFN naïve	Iron removal by phlebotomy improved serum ALT levels and the rate of SVR to IFN
(b) Iron depletion plus IFN
Van Thiel et al. [58]	30	30 IFN NR	Combination therapy increased SVR (60% vs. 13% in the IFN-alone group)
Fong et al. [59]	38	38 IFN naïve	Combination therapy increased SVR (29% vs. 5% in the IFN-alone group)
Fontana et al. [60]	82	82 IFN naïve	Combination therapy improved virologic and histological response to IFN

Abbreviations: IFN, interferon; NR, nonresponders; ALT, alanine aminotransferase; SBR, sustained biochemical response; SVR, sustained viral response