Hepat Mon.2012;12(7):430-436. DOI: 10.5812/hepatmon.6170 KOWSAR www.HepatMon.com Treatment Response and Tolerability of Pegylated Interferon-α Plus Ribavirin Combination Therapy in Elderly Patients (≥ 65 years) With Chronic Hepatitis C in Korea Hyeong Il Kim 1, In Hee Kim 1*, Byung Jun Jeon 1, Seok Lee 1, Seong Hun Kim 1, Sang Wook Kim 1, Seung Ok Lee 1, Soo Teik Lee 1, Dae Ghon Kim 1 1 Department of Internal Medicine, Chonbuk National University Medical School and Hospital, Jeonju, Jeonbuk, South Korea A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T Article type: Original Article Article history: Received: 27 Apr 2012 Revised: 07 May 2012 Accepted: 17 May 2012 Keywords: Chronic Hepatitis C Ribavirin Korea Background: The prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections in elderly patients has been increasing in a number of countries. A few reports concerning pegylated interferon-α (PEG-IFN-α)-based combination treatment in elderly chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients have been published, with slightly different treatment outcomes. Objectives: We investigated the treatment response and safety of PEG-IFN-α plus ribavirin combination therapy in elderly patients with CHC. Patients and Methods: Among a total of 181 treatment-naïve CHC patients (60 patients with genotype 1, 121 patients with genotype 2 or 3), 38 were aged ≥ 65 years (defined as the elderly group) and 143 were aged < 65 years (defined as the non-elderly group). Results: The overall sustained virologic response (SVR) was lower in the elderly group than in the non-elderly group, but it was not significantly different (65.8 %vs. 76.2 %, P = 0.15). In a subgroup analysis, among patients with genotype 1, the elderly group had a significantly lower SVR rate than the non-elderly group (30.8 % vs. 66.0 %, P = 0.03). However, the SVR rate in patients with HCV genotype 2 or 3 was comparable between the two groups (84.0 % vs. 81.3 %, P = 0.85). HCV genotype was significantly associated with SVR in the elderly patients (genotype 1 vs. 2 or 3, odds ratio: 0.18, 95% confidence interval: 0.000-0.869, P = 0.03). The incidence of premature discontinuation of treatment (21.1 % vs. 9.1 %, P = 0.05) and dose modification (52.6 % vs. 31.5 %; P = 0.02) due mainly to adverse events or laboratory abnor- malities, were higher in the elderly group than in the non-elderly group. Conclusions: PEG-IFN-α plus ribavirin combination therapy might be considered for elder- ly CHC patients, especially for genotype 2 or 3, with vigilant monitoring of adverse events. Copyright c 2012 Kowsar Corp. All rights reserved. Implication for health policy/practice/research/medical education: The care of older patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is one of the most important issues confronted by physicians. The results of this study suggest that PEG-IFN-α plus ribavirin combination therapy might be considered for elderly chronic hepatitis C pa- tients, especially for genotype 2 or 3, with vigilant monitoring of adverse events. Please cite this paper as: Kim HI, Kim IH, Jeon BJ, Lee S, Kim SH, Kim SW, et al. Treatment Response and Tolerability of Pegylated Interferon-α Plus Ribavirin Combination Therapy in Elderly Patients (≥ 65 years) With Chronic Hepatitis C in Korea. Hepat Mon. 2012;12(7): 430-6. DOI: 10.5812/ hepatmon.6170 * Corresponding author: In Hee Kim, Department of Internal Medi- cine, Chonbuk National University Medical School and Hospital, 634-18 Keumam-dong, Dukjin-gu, Jeonju, Jeonbuk 561-712, South Korea. Tel: +82- 632501677, Fax: +82-632541609, E-mail: ihkimmd@jbnu.ac.kr DOI: 10.5812/hepatmon.6170 Copyright c 2012 Kowsar Corp. All rights reserved.