Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0023890 (cirrhosis)
 42,195 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Antiviral therapy for chronic hepatitis B virus infection can result in clearance of replicating virus from the liver and prevention of progression to cirrhosis in a substantial proportion of patients. Adenosine arabinoside monophosphate, a potent inhibitor of HBV replication, is of limited usefulness because it causes significant neuromuscular toxicity. Acyclovir alone is relatively nontoxic, but is clinically ineffective in eliminating HBV from the liver. Lymphoblastoid or recombinant alpha-interferons are the best option at present and offer up to a 50% chance of long-term inhibition of HBV replication (with only minor side-effects) in patients who acquire the infection in adulthood. However alpha-interferon therapy alone is not effective when infection is acquired from birth. In this latter group of patients, prednisolone pre-treatment followed by alpha-interferon is currently under evaluation.
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PMID:Antiviral therapy: hepatitis B. 169 58

Chronic forms of viral B,C and D hepatitis and fulminant hepatitis represent a serious healthcare problem. The study deals with the changes in the strategy in treating these diseases. During the chronic active hepatitis caused by the B hepatitis virus, the main aim of treatment is to cease multiplication of viruses, eliminate the clinical symptoms, prevent the development of cirrhosis, or the origin of hepatocellular carcinoma. The authors analyze the possibilities of the application of corticosteroids, viricidal drugs (vidarabin and interferons) and other medicaments (acyclovir, zidovudin, duramin, gancyclovir, chinacrin, and others) besides corticosteroids, interleukin 2 and tymozin from the group of immunomodulators were tested. The testing included the factor stimulating the colonies of granulocytes and myeloblasts and other substances. The therapy of acute protracted B hepatitis by means of interferon still requires controlled studies. Superinfection by D virus in chronic carriers of HBsAG causes chronic hepatitis which quickly leads to the development of cirrhosis. The therapy on basis of alpha interferon decreases the RNA virus D hepatitis serum level and leads to an improvement in the development of chronic hepatitis in half of the patients. Therapy of chronic C hepatitis on basis of corticosteroids is ineffective, and can be dangerous. Acyclovir is proved to be ineffective as well. The open study indicated certain positive results in application of interferon. The fulminant hepatitis can be defined as a development of encephalopathy and a decrease of the prothrombin time to less than 50% in the course of acute hepatitis. The break-point in the therapy of fulminant hepatitis took place in association with the performance of the transplantation of the liver. Impossibility to transplant the liver means that the effect of therapy of fulminant hepatitis is merely of supportive value. Majority of patients die due to neurologic complications, namely unmanageable oedema of the brain. But still, neither the antioedema therapy, e.g. on basis of manitol, as well as by means of corticosteroids, hemodialysis, hemofiltration, plasmapheresis and hemoperfusion, nor the treatment on basis of E1 prostaglandine improved the survival of patients. (Tab. 2, Ref. 82).
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PMID:[Treatment of viral hepatitis]. 855 59