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World J Gastroenterol. May 7, 2007; 13(17): 2461-2466
Published online May 7, 2007. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v13.i17.2461
Hepatitis C virus: Virology, diagnosis and management of antiviral therapy
Stéphane Chevaliez, Jean-Michel Pawlotsky
Stéphane Chevaliez, Jean-Michel Pawlotsky, French National Reference Center for Viral Hepatitis B, C and delta, Department of Virology & INSERM U841, Henri Mondor Hospital, University of Paris XII, Créteil, France
Author contributions: All authors contributed equally to the work.
Correspondence to: Jean-Michel Pawlotsky, MD, PhD, Professor, Department of Virology, Hôpital Henri Mondor, 51 avenue du Maréchal de Lattre de Tassigny, 94010 Créteil, France. jean-michel.pawlotsky@hmn.aphp.fr
Telephone: +33-1-49812827 Fax: +33-1-49814831
Received: March 7, 2007
Revised: March 8, 2007
Accepted: March 12, 2007
Published online: May 7, 2007
Abstract

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infects approximately 170 million individuals worldwide. Prevention of HCV infection complications is based on antiviral therapy with the combination of pegylated interferon alfa and ribavirin. The use of serological and virological tests has become essential in the management of HCV infection in order to diagnose infection, guide treatment decisions and assess the virological response to antiviral therapy. Anti-HCV antibody testing and HCV RNA testing are used to diagnose acute and chronic hepatitis C. The HCV genotype should be systematically determined before treatment, as it determines the indication, the duration of treatment, the dose of ribavirin and the virological monitoring procedure. HCV RNA monitoring during therapy is used to tailor treatment duration in HCV genotype 1 infection, and molecular assays are used to assess the end-of-treatment and, most importantly the sustained virological response, i.e. the endpoint of therapy.

Keywords: Hepatitis C virus; serological tests; Hepatitis C virus genotype; HCV RNA quantification; Interferon alpha; Ribavirin