These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.
Pubmed for Handhelds
PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS
Search MEDLINE/PubMed
Title: Therapy of chronic type B hepatitis with adenine arabinoside and adenine arabinoside monophosphate. Author: Hoofnagle JH. Journal: J Hepatol; 1986; 3 Suppl 2():S73-80. PubMed ID: 2439579. Abstract: Adenine arabinoside (ARA-A) and its monophosphate (ARA-AMP) are potent inhibitors of hepatitis B virus, but they have not been shown to beneficially alter the natural history of chronic type B hepatitis. Analysis of responders to ARA-AMP therapy has shown that responses can be temporary and that truly long-term beneficial responses are rare. Most long-term responses occur in patients with marked elevations in serum aminotransferase activities and severe chronic active hepatitis. This group of patients, however, may also be the most likely to have a spontaneous improvement in chronic hepatitis. Analyses from England suggest that male homosexual patients have a lower response rate to ARA-AMP than heterosexual patients. This difference has not been shown in studies from the United States. The effect of HTLV-III infection on the course and outcome of hepatitis B virus infection and on clinical responses to antiviral therapy needs further evaluation. In view of the side-effects of ARA-AMP and its marginal efficacy, it is unlikely to play a role as a single agent in the therapy of this important chronic liver disease. However, the use of ARA-AMP after a short course of immunosuppressive therapy is an approach to therapy that deserves future investigation in prospective controlled trials.[Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]