Direct-acting antiviral therapy improves kidney survival in hepatitis C virus-associated cryoglobulinaemia: the RENALCRYOGLOBULINEMIC study

BACKGROUND: Direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs) have shown high rates of sustained virological response in chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. However, the influence of DAAs on the course of kidney involvement in HCV-associated mixed cryoglobulinaemia (HCV-MC) has been little studied. The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of antiviral treatment on kidney prognosis and evolution in patients diagnosed with HCV-MC. METHODS: The RENALCRYOGLOBULINEMIC study is an observational multicentre cohort study of 139 patients with HCV-MC from 14 Spanish centres. Clinical and laboratory parameters were measured before and after antiviral treatment. Primary endpoints were kidney survival and mortality after HCV-MC diagnosis. Secondary endpoints were clinical, immunological and virological responses after antiviral treatment. RESULTS: Patients were divided into three groups based on the treatment received: treatment with DAAs (n = 100) treatment with interferon (IFN) and ribavirin (RBV) (n = 24) and no treatment (n = 15). Patients were followed up for a median duration of 138 months (interquartile range 70–251. DAA treatment reduced overall mortality {hazard ratio [HR] 0.12 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.04–0.40]; P < 0.001} and improved kidney survival [HR 0.10 ( 95% CI 0.04–0.33); P < 0.001]. CONCLUSIONS: Results from the RENALCRYOGLOBULINEMIC study indicated that DAA treatment in patients with HCV-MC improves kidney survival and reduces mortality.