Hepatitis
The Unspecific Character Of Hepatitis C Symptoms
Hepatitis C generally refers to infection of the liver. The disease has an incubation stage of up to six months, and patients often have no clear symptoms over this period of time. In some cases the symptoms of C occur after a few months from the moment of infection, while in other cases the symptoms of C occur after more than a year, when the disease becomes chronic.
Due to the unspecific character of most symptoms produced by C, the process of establishing the accurate diagnosis is very complicated and time consuming for doctors. It is virtually impossible for doctors to diagnose C relying solely on patients’ reports of symptoms and clinical examinations.
In order to reveal conclusive evidence of HCV (hepatitis C virus) infection, doctors need to perform a series
of laboratory tests. Careful blood analyses are considered to be the most reliable method of tracing clear signs of C in patients with suspected hepatitis. Liver biopsy is another useful medical procedure that can indicate the presence of infection with HCV and that can also provide doctors with additional information regarding the progression of the disease.
In early stages of infection with HCV, most persons experience no symptoms at all. Other persons may experience very diffuse, hardly perceivable generalized symptoms such as fatigue and nausea.
At first, the symptoms produced by C are generally mild and resemble those produced by cold or flu: muscular weakness and tenderness; joint stiffness and pain; loss of appetite. Mild or moderate fever can also occur in patients with C in the early phases of the disease.
A more relevant symptom consists in recurrent pain and pronounced discomfort in the liver area, often suggesting infection and inflammation of the organ.
In the later stages of infection with HCV, the symptoms produced by the disease gradually increase in intensity and duration, pointing to potential complications. In advanced phases of C.
The most common symptoms are: yellowish appearance of the skin and mucosal membranes (mouth and nasal mucosal lining), yellowish appearance of the eyes (often indicating the development of jaundice or icterus), light-colored feces and dark-colored urine.
Patients diagnosed with complicated forms of C can suffer from enlargement and inflammation of the liver and spleen, severe weight loss, severe body weakness, nausea, abdominal pain and vomiting. Patients with complicated C often develop intolerance to alcoholic beverages. Pronounced intolerance to alcohol as well as to fatty food products can be an indicator of cirrhosis (liver cancer).
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Hepatitis C Translating Initiatives for Depression Into Solutions
<b>Conditions</b>: Hepatitis C; Depression<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Other: Depression collaborative care model<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Department of Veterans Affairs<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b> - verified June 2010
Epidemiological Study to Evaluate the Management of Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C and Previous Treatment Failure
<b>Condition</b>: Hepatitis C<br/><b>Intervention</b>: <br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Fundacion IMIM<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified November 2009
Safety, Metabolism, and Antioxidant Activity of Silymarin and Green Tea Extract in Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C
<b>Conditions</b>: Chronic Hepatitis C; Oxidative Stress<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Dietary Supplement: silymarin; Dietary Supplement: green tea extract (EGCG)<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM); National Institutes of Health (NIH)<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified February 2010
Hepatitis C in a Cohort of Patients With Maintenance Therapy for Opiate Dependence - Prevalence, Severity and Outcome of Antiviral Therapy
<b>Condition</b>: Hepatitis C<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Drug: Pegylated interferon-alfa-2b and ribavirin<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Region Skane<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified January 2010
Safety and Tolerability Study of the Monoclonal Antibody CT-011 in Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C Genotype I Infection
<b>Condition</b>: Chronic Hepatitis C<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Drug: CT-011<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: CureTech Ltd; Teva Pharmaceutical Industries<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified September 2009
Influence of Antiviral Therapy on Bone Mineral Density and Metabolism in Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C
<b>Conditions</b>: Hepatitis C, Chronic; Liver Diseases; Virus Diseases<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Drug: peginterferon alfa-2a and ribavirin<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: University of Ulm; Hoffmann-La Roche<br/><b>Completed</b> - verified January 2010
Efficacy and Safety Study to Evaluate the Effects of Mogroside Sweetener on Viral Load in Treatment (TX) Naive Genotype 1 (GT 1) Subjects With Chronic Hepatitis C (CHC)
<b>Condition</b>: Hepatitis C<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Dietary Supplement: Mogroside sweetener (PureLo)<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: The Geneva Foundation<br/><b>Enrolling by invitation</b> - verified June 2009
Pilot Study of Betaine + Combination Antiviral Therapy for Chronic Hepatitis C Genotype 1 Non-Responder/Relapsers
<b>Conditions</b>: Chronic Hepatitis C; Genotype 1; Relapse<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: Betaine; Drug: Peginterferon alpha 2a; Drug: Ribavirin<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: University of Nebraska<br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b> - verified April 2009
Effects of Genotypes on Interferon Signaling in Chronic Hepatitis C
<b>Condition</b>: Chronic Hepatitis C<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Procedure: Blood sampling of peripheral blood mononuclear cells; Procedure: Blood draw, 20ml peripheral blood mononuclear cells<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: University of Nebraska<br/><b>Terminated</b> - verified January 2010
Increasing Cure Rate of Hepatitis C Therapy in Obese Hepatitis C Patients
<b>Conditions</b>: Obesity; Insulin Resistance; Metabolic Syndrome; Hepatitis C<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: Orlistat; Behavioral: Dietary and Lifestyle modification educational sessions<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: University of Pittsburgh<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified March 2009
TMC435350-TiDP16-C202: A Study to Assess the Activity of TMC435 on Hepatitis C Virus in Patients Who Have Never Received Treatment for Their Hepatitis C Infection.
<b>Conditions</b>: Hepatitis C, Chronic; Hepatitis C; Infection<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Drug: TMC435<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Tibotec Pharmaceuticals, Ireland<br/><b>Completed</b> - verified April 2010
Study of Maternal Hepatitis C Infection and Influenza Vaccination in Pregnancy
<b>Condition</b>: Hepatitis C<br/><b>Intervention</b>: <br/><b>Sponsor</b>: University of California, San Francisco<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified August 2009
A Study Evaluating 24-Week Telaprevir-Based Treatment, or Extended Treatment to 48 Weeks, in Chronic Hepatitis C Patients Who Achieve a Rapid Viral Response
<b>Condition</b>: Hepatitis C<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: telaprevir; Drug: ribavirin; Biological: peginterferon alfa-2a<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated; Tibotec Pharmaceutical Limited<br/><b>Active, not recruiting</b> - verified January 2009
Adherence in Patients Receiving PegIntron and Rebetol for Hepatitis C in Conjunction With a Patient Assistance Program (Study P04206)(TERMINATED)
<b>Conditions</b>: Hepatitis C, Chronic; Hepacivirus<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Biological: Peginterferon alfa-2b (SCH 54031); Drug: Ribavirin (SCH 18908); Behavioral: Patient assistance program<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Schering-Plough<br/><b>Terminated</b> - verified July 2008
Viral Kinetics and Liver Gene Expression in Response to Ribavirin and Peginterferon Therapy of Chronic Hepatitis C
<b>Condition</b>: Hepatitis C, Chronic<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Procedure: Liver Biopsy; Drug: Peginterferon & Ribavirin for Hepatitis C; Drug: Pre-treatment Ribavirin<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified March 2010
HDV-Interferon in the Treatment of Chronic Hepatitis C Nonresponders and Naive Hepatitis C Patients
<b>Condition</b>: Chronic Hepatitis C<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: Oral HDV-Interferon + ribavarin; Drug: Injectable HDV-Interferon + ribavarin<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Hepasome Pharmaceuticals<br/><b>Active, not recruiting</b> - verified January 2009
Effect of Immunosuppression Drug Weaning on Hepatitis C Virus (HCV)-Induced Liver Damage After Liver Transplantation
<b>Conditions</b>: Hepatitis C Virus Infection; Liver Transplantation<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Procedure: Gradual immunosuppression drug withdrawal.<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Hospital Clinic of Barcelona<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified December 2008
Hepatitis C Treatment and Atherosclerosis
<b>Conditions</b>: Chronic Hepatitis C; Atherosclerosis<br/><b>Intervention</b>: <br/><b>Sponsor</b>: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified July 2010
SHO-SAIKO-TO for Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C: A Phase II Study
<b>Condition</b>: Hepatitis C<br/><b>Intervention</b>: Other: Sho-saiko-to<br/><b>Sponsor</b>: Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center<br/><b>Active, not recruiting</b> - verified February 2010
Use of Omega-3 Fatty Acids (Fish Oil) in Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C Infection
<b>Condition</b>: Hepatitis C<br/><b>Interventions</b>: Dietary Supplement: Omega-3 Fatty Acids; Drug: Placebo comparator<br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Truman Medical Center; Reliant Pharmaceuticals; Saint Luke's Health System Foundation<br/><b>Recruiting</b> - verified June 2009
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