Long-term Follow-up of Children Treated With Peginterferon and Ribavirin for Hepatitis C Virus Infection.

Objectives: To describe the 5-year follow-up of children who received peginterferon and ribavirin in a global, open-label study. Methods: A 5-year follow-up study of 107 children and adolescents aged 3-17 years with chronic hepatitis C virus infection who received peginterferon and ribavirin for 24 or 48 weeks. No drugs were administered during follow-up. Results: Ninety-four patients were enrolled in the long-term follow-up portion of the study; the median duration of follow-up was 287 weeks (range, 73-339). Of 63 patients with sustained virologic response who were enrolled, 54 completed 5 years of follow-up; none had relapse in the 5-year follow-up period. Significant decreases in height z scores were observed during treatment. The impact of treatment on height z score was larger in patients treated for 48 weeks compared with those treated for 24 weeks (mean change from baseline to the end of treatment was -0.13 (p

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