TITLE:
Impact of Gender Difference on Characteristics and Outcome of Chronic Hepatitis C
AUTHORS:
Mahmoud Saif-Al-Islam, Hamdy Saad Mohamed, Mustafa Adel Younis, Mahmoud Yosef Abdelhamid, Magda Mohamed Ali, Safaa Khalaf
KEYWORDS:
Chronic HCV, Risk Factors, Gender Difference, DAA Therapy
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Gastroenterology,
Vol.10 No.11,
November
5,
2020
ABSTRACT: Gender difference in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) infection is not
previously well studied. We aimed to analyze the effect of gender difference on
the risk factors of CHC, disease progression, and outcome after oral direct
acting antiviral (DAA) therapy. The study was conducted at Tropical Medicine and Gastroenterology
Department, Sohag University, Egypt, in the period between 2018 and 2020. 775
patients were evaluated for hepatitis C virus (HCV) risk factors. Laboratory
investigations, abdominal ultrasound and liver Shear wave elastography (SWE) were done. The patients were given antiviral
therapy and followed up to assess the response and side effects of DAA
therapy. 434 (56%) of study patients were males and 341 (44%) were females. Catching infection from blood
transfusion and intravenous (IV) injection of tarter emetic was significantly higher in males, while catching
infection from surgical operation was significantly higher in females. Hepatic
fibrosis was significantly more extensive in males. Side effects were reported
more in females. Sustained virological response (SVR) 12 was reported in 98.6%. Females had a slightly
better SVR12 than males (99.4% versus 97.9%). In conclusion males were
different from females in exposure to HCV risk factors. After introduction of
blood screening and stoppage of parenteral anti-bilharzial therapy
the risk of HCV infection could be greatly prevented in males, while the
exposure of females to obstetric procedure is increasing nowadays which hides a risk of ongoing infection in females. So, HCV
surveillance programs in females retain their importance in early detection and management of CHC.
Although hepatic fibrosis progression was more in males, females were more
liable to adverse events of DAA therapy. So, researchers should consider the
gender of their patients in drug design and administration.