Improvement in Liver Stiffness in Pediatric Patients with Hepatitis C Virus after Treatment with Direct Acting Antivirals

• Published in: The Journal of pediatrics 2021-06, Vol.233, p.126-131
• Main Authors: Mogahed, Engy A., El-Karaksy, Hanaa, Abdullatif, Hala, Yasin, Noha A., Nagy, Ahmed, Alem, Shereen Abdel, Eldeen, Hadeel Gamal, El-Raziky, Mona S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: children; DDAs; fibroscan; fibrosis; hepatitis C
• ISSN: 0022-3476; 1097-6833
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2021.02.012

To assess the degree of liver stiffness using transient elastography in Egyptian children infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) at baseline and 1 year after achievement of sustained virologic response (SVR) with direct acting antivirals. This prospective study included children infected with HCV who received treatment with sofosbuvir/ledipasvir and achieved SVR. At baseline and 1 year after achievement of SVR, the extent of hepatic fibrosis was assessed by transient elastography using FibroScan to measure liver stiffness, in addition to noninvasive markers including aspartate aminotransferase/platelet ratio index (APRI) and fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) index. The study included 23 cases that had variable degrees of fibrosis at baseline; their ages ranged between 10 and 18 years. At baseline, 13 patients had F1; 3 patients had F1-F2; 1 patient had F2; 3 patients had F3; 2 had F3-F4; and 2 patients with F4. One year after achievement of SVR, there was a statistically significant improvement in liver stiffness, APRI, and FIB-4 index (P = .03,