Treatment of chronic hepatitis C with different genotypes

Abstract

An estimated 175 million people worldwide are infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV), making it the most common cause of liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in both Europe and the United States (World Health Organization, 2000). Each year, up to 4 million people will be newly infected, of which the majority (75-85%) will go on to develop chronic infection. The characterization of HCV has been dependent on genetic sequencing in the absence of an appropriate small animal model or cell culture system. In particular, genotyping of HCV has become routine in day-to-day clinical management of chronic hepatitis C patients as a result of differences in treatment response to interferon (IFN) therapy between genotypes. Population studies of HCV genotypes may also give insight into the origin, evolution, and migration of HCV. However, the role of genotypes in disease progression, outcome, and association with other disease states remains to be fully determined. © 2008 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.