Treatment of Hepatitis C Virus Infections Among Patients of Ukrainian Origin During the Influx of War Refugees to Poland.

The wave of wartime migration from Ukraine has raised a number of concerns about infectious diseases, the prevalence of which is higher in Ukraine than in host countries, with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection being one of them. Our analysis aimed to assess the percentage of HCV-infected Ukrainian refugees under care in Polish centers providing antiviral diagnosis and therapy, to evaluate their characteristics and the effectiveness of treatment with direct-acting antiviral drugs (DAAs). The analysis included patients of Polish and Ukrainian nationality treated for HCV infection between 2022 and 2024 in Polish hepatology centers.

Treatment of HCV infection in patients with steatotic liver disease.

Aim Of The Study: The aim of the study was to characterize the population with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and steatotic liver disease (SLD) in comparison to the non-SLD HCV-infected patients and to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment with direct-acting antivirals (DAA).

Material And Methods: The analysis included 62 patients diagnosed with SLD and 14,284 non-SLD patients from the EpiTer-2 database for the period 2015-2022.

Results: Unlike the non-SLD population, the SLD group was dominated by men (49.

Effectiveness of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir in HIV/HCV-coinfected patients treated with bictegravir/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide.

Aim Of The Study: To assess the real-life efficacy and safety of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir (GLE/PIB) in HIV/HCV- positive patients treated with bictegravir/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide (B/FTC/TAF).

Material And Methods: Patients were evaluated in terms of their baseline biochemical characteristics, which included platelet count, serum creatinine and bilirubin levels, alanine transaminase (ALT) activity, international normalized ratio (INR) and Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score.The efficacy endpoint was the achievement of a sustained virologic response at posttreatment week 12 (SVR12), defined as undetectable HCV RNA 12 weeks after the scheduled end of therapy.

Hepatitis C Infection Is Not a Cardiovascular Risk Factor in Young Adults.

: Cardiovascular diseases are one of the leading causes of hospitalization and death in Poland and around the world and are still an ongoing problem for modern medicine. Despite advances in diagnosis and treatment, both conservative and invasive, the prevention of cardiovascular disease directed at reducing risk factors remains a problem. The main classical risk factors for the development of cardiovascular disease in Poland include hypertension, lipid disorders, obesity, diabetes and smoking.

The Real-World Efficacy and Safety of Direct-Acting Antivirals for Chronic Hepatitis C in Patients Active Malignancies.

Background: Over the past years, the introduction of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) revolutionized chronic hepatitis C treatment. We aimed to characterize and assess treatment efficacy in three specific groups of patients treated with DAAs: those with active solid malignant tumors (SMTs), hematological diseases (HDs) and hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs).

Methods: A total of 203 patients with active oncological disease (SMT = 61, HD = 67, HCC = 74) during DAA treatment in 2015-2020 selected from the EpiTer-2 database were analyzed retrospectively and compared to 12,983 patients without any active malignancy.

Real-world experience with direct-acting antiviral therapy in HCV-infected patients with cirrhosis and esophageal varices.

Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection affects 50 million people worldwide with around 242,000 deaths annually, mainly due to complications such as cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Portal hypertension (PH) caused by cirrhosis leads to severe consequences, including esophageal varices (EV). This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatment in patients with and without EV.

Real-world effectiveness of genotype-specific and pangenotypic direct-acting antivirals in HCV-infected patients with renal failure.

Aim Of The Study: The aim is to summarize the effectiveness and safety of genotype-specific and pangenotypic hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatments in patients with renal failure.

Material And Methods: In the EpiTer-2 database, which includes data from 22 hepatology centers in Poland, 593 patients with HCV infection and kidney failure were identified. According to KDIGO 2022, they fulfilled the criteria of chronic kidney disease.

Real-life effectiveness of antiviral therapy for HCV infection with pangenotypic regimens in HIV coinfected patients.

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the real-life efficacy of pangenotypic antivirals in HIV-HCV-positive patients.

Research Design And Methods: The analysis included 5650 subjects who were treated with pangenotypic anti-HCV drugs: 5142 were HCV-positive and 508 were HIV-HCV-positive.

Results: Patients with HCV-monoinfection were older ( < 0.

Effectiveness and safety of direct-acting antivirals in the therapy of HCV-infected elderly people.

Background: The introduction of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) with their effectiveness and safety has revolutionized the approach to treating hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections. Nevertheless, elderly patients have often been excluded from clinical trials, so the results of real-world studies are particularly important in the context of the geriatric population. The study aimed to analyze the effectiveness and safety of antiviral DAA treatment in HCV-infected patients over the age of 65, with notable inclusion of those over the age of 85.

Direct-acting antivirals in women of reproductive age infected with hepatitis C virus.

Eliminating hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in the population of women of reproductive age is important not only for the health of women themselves but also for the health of newborns. This study aimed to evaluate the implementation of this goal by analysing the effectiveness of contemporary therapy in a large cohort from everyday clinical practice along with identifying factors reducing therapeutic success. The analysed population consisted of 7861 patients, including 3388 women aged 15-49, treated in 2015-2022 in 26 hepatology centres.

Pangenotypic triple double therapy in HCV-infected patients after prior failure of direct-acting antivirals.

Aim Of The Study: Despite the excellent effectiveness of direct-acting antivirals (DAA) in the treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, still a few percent of patients fail therapy. The study aimed to determine the effectiveness of triple vs double rescue treatment in such a population.

Material And Methods: The study included all consecutive DAA-experienced patients retreated with pangenotypic options from the EpiTer-2 database, a retrospective national multicenter real-world project evaluating antiviral treatment in HCV-infected patients in 2015-2023.

Real-World Effectiveness and Safety of Direct-Acting Antivirals in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C and Epilepsy: An Epi-Ter-2 Study in Poland.

Introduction: In Poland, active HCV infection affects between 0.4 and 0.5% of the population, i.

Real-world effectiveness and safety of direct-acting antivirals in hepatitis C virus patients with mental disorders.

Background: It is estimated that 58 million people worldwide are infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Patients with severe psychiatric disorders could not be treated with previously available interferon-based therapies due to their unfavorable side effect profile. This has changed with the introduction of direct-acting antivirals (DAA), although their real-life tolerance and effectiveness in patients with different psychiatric disorders remain to be demonstrated.

Changes in characteristics of patients with hepatitis C virus-related cirrhosis from the beginning of the interferon-free era.

Background: Nearly 290000 patients with chronic hepatitis C die annually from the most severe complications of the disease. One of them is liver cirrhosis, which occurs in about 20% of patients chronically infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Direct-acting antivirals (DAAs), which replaced interferon (IFN)-based regimens, significantly improved the prognosis of this group of patients, increasing HCV eradication rates and tolerability of therapy.

Rescue Therapy after Failure of HCV Antiviral Treatment with Interferon-Free Regimens.

Direct-acting antivirals (DAA) regimens have provided hope for eliminating hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Patients following ineffective therapy with DAA, especially those previously treated with inhibitors of non-structural protein 5A (NS5A), remain a challenge. The study aimed to assess the effectiveness of DAA pangenotypic options in patients after failure of NS5A containing genotype-specific regimens.

Effectiveness of pangenotypic retreatment of chronic hepatitis C after prior failure of pangenotypic therapies.

Introduction: Despite the overall excellent efficacy of pangenotypic direct‑acting antiviral (DAA) options, there is still a small percentage of patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection who do not respond to the therapy.

Objectives: This analysis was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of pangenotypic retreatment in the cases of pangenotypic therapy failure.

Patients And Methods: The study included patients treated with the pangenotypic regimen, selected from the EpiTer‑2 database, a real‑world project evaluating DAA‑based treatment in Poland.

Best therapy for the easiest to treat hepatitis C virus genotype 1b-infected patients.

Background: The revolution in treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection dates back to the introduction of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs). The increase in efficacy was most pronounced in patients infected with genotype (GT) 1b, as this was the most poorly responsive population to treatment during the interferon era.

Aim: To identify the most effective interferon-free therapy for GT1b-infected patients and to determine positive and negative predictors of virological response.

Hepatitis C Infection as a Risk Factor for Hypertension and Cardiovascular Diseases: An EpiTer Multicenter Study.

Hepatitis C infection is one of the main reasons for liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. In recent years, more and more is being heard about extrahepatic manifestations of the hepatitis C infection including its possible influence on the development of hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. In the given work, the frequency analysis of the incidence of hypertension and cardiovascular diseases among 2898 HCV-infected patients treated in Poland and the assessment of their relevance to the HCV genotype and the progression of liver fibrosis can be found.

HCV Genotype Has No Influence on the Incidence of Diabetes-EpiTer Multicentre Study.

HCV infection is one of the main reasons for liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. In recent years, one finds more and more extrahepatic manifestations of HCV infection, including its possible influence on the development of diabetes. In the presented work, one finds the frequency analysis of the incidence of diabetes among 2898 HCV infected patients treated in Poland, and the assessment of their relevance to the HCV genotype and the progression of fibrosis.

Effectiveness and Safety of Pangenotypic Regimens in the Most Difficult to Treat Population of Genotype 3 HCV Infected Cirrhotics.

There is still limited data available from real-world experience studies on the pangenotypic regimens in patients with genotype (GT) 3 hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and liver cirrhosis. The current study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of pangenotypic regimens in this difficult-to-treat population. A total of 236 patients with mean age 52.

Factors influencing the failure of interferon-free therapy for chronic hepatitis C: Data from the Polish EpiTer-2 cohort study.

Background: The introduction of direct-acting antiviral drugs into clinical practice has revolutionized the treatment of chronic hepatitis C, making it highly effective and safe for patients. However, few researchers have analyzed the factors causing therapy failure in some patients.

Aim: To analyze factors influencing the failure of direct antiviral drugs in the large, multicenter EpiTer-2 cohort in a real-world setting.

Real-world direct-acting antiviral treatment in kidney transplant and hemodialysis patients: the EpiTer-2 multicenter observational study.

Background: Patients who undergo hemodialysis (HD) or kidney transplantation (KTx) previously had limited possibilities for treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Direct-acting antivirals (DAA) give these patients a chance of virus eradication and safe transplantation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of DAA in KTx and HD patients in real-world settings.

Real-world effectiveness and safety of direct-acting antivirals in patients with cirrhosis and history of hepatic decompensation: Epi-Ter2 Study.

Background And Aims: The aim of this study was to assess the real-life effectiveness and safety of direct acting antivirals (DAAs) in patients with cirrhosis and history of hepatic decompensation compared to those with compensated cirrhosis.

Method: Data of patients treated with DAAs and included in the EpiTer-2 database (N = 10 152) were collected retrospectively. The primary endpoint was sustained viral response (SVR) at 12 weeks posttreatment.

Is an 8-week regimen of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir sufficient for all hepatitis C virus infected patients in the real-world experience?

Background And Aims: The revolution of the antiviral treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection resulting in higher effectiveness came with the introduction of direct-acting antivirals with pangenotypic regimens as a final touch. Among them, the combination of glecaprevir (GLE) and pibrentasvir (PIB) provides the opportunity for shortening therapy to 8 weeks in the majority of patients. Because of still insufficient evaluation of this regimen in the real-world experience, our study aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of 8-week GLE/PIB in chronic hepatitis C patients depending on liver fibrosis and genotype (GT).