Improvement in the Amino Acid Imbalance in Hepatitis C Virus Infected Patients After Viral Eradication by Interferon Treatment

BACKGROUND: In patients with chronic liver diseases (CLDs), hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in particular may cause various metabolic disorders. We previously reported that the value of the ratio of branched-chain amino acids to tyrosine (BTR) decreased with the progression of liver fibrosis. OBJECTIVES: We investigated the changes in clinical variables during interferon (IFN) treatment and assessed whether HCV eradication improved the amino acid imbalance in HCV infected patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively collected the clinical data of HCV-related CLD patients whose BTR values had been measured both pre- and post-IFN treatment. A total of 17 patients with a sustained viral response (SVR) (mean observational period: 1085.0 days) and 19 patients without an SVR (Non-SVR) (mean observational period: 1002.5 days) were studied. RESULTS: In patients with an SVR, the serum levels of aminotransferases were decreased after HCV eradication. Although general liver functional tests (albumin and total bilirubin) did not significantly change, the BTR values significantly increased. However, in patients without an SVR, an improvement in the BTR value was not observed after IFN treatment. CONCLUSIONS: HCV eradication can improve the amino acid imbalance in HCV infected patients.