Re-treatment of patients with anti-HBe-positive chronic hepatitis B who relapsed after an initial course of lamivudine.

Aim: To evaluate the efficacy of a long-term course of lamivudine monotherapy in patients with anti-HBe-positive chronic hepatitis B who relapsed after the first course of either lamivudine/interferon (n = 16; Group 1) or lamivudine (n = 20; Group 2).

Methods: Biochemical and virological tests were performed every 3 months. At baseline and breakthrough, the region coding for the YMDD amino acid motif was sequenced.

Lamivudine/interferon combination therapy in anti-HBe positive chronic hepatitis B patients: a controlled pilot study.

Background/aims: In this study, lamivudine-interferon (LAM/IFN) combination therapy was compared to LAM monotherapy to verify if the combination treatment might improve efficacy and reduce the emergence of LAM-resistant mutants.

Methods: Fifty patients with anti-HBe-positive chronic hepatitis B were treated for 12 months with LAM at 100mg/day (26 pts) or with IFN at 5MU t.i.