Regression of liver stiffness after sustained hepatitis C virus (HCV) virological responses among HIV/HCV-coinfected patients

Abstract

Objective: We assessed the impact of a sustained virological response (SVR) on liver stiffness among HIV/hepatitis C virus (HCV)-coinfected patients enrolled in the ANRS CO13 HEPAVIH cohort.

Methods: We studied HIV/HCV-coinfected patients who received at least one dose of any anti-HCV treatment and who had documented SVR status, a pretreatment FibroScan value of at least 7.1 kPa, and at least one posttreatment FibroScan value. The time required to achieve at least a 30% decrease in liver stiffness was analyzed by constructing Kaplan-Meier curves and using Cox proportional hazards models.

Results: Among 98 patients treated for HCV infection with either pegylated interferon along with ribavirin (n = 89) or protease inhibitor-based triple therapy (n = 9), 53 patients (54%) had an SVR. Median follow-up was 44.6 (interquartile range: 28.8-58.9) months. The probability of achieving a 30% decrease in FibroScan values was 51% [95% confidence interval (CI): 39-66] in patients with an SVR and 21% in nonresponders (95% CI: 11-36) at 1 year, and 74% (61-86) and 28% (17-44) at 2 years, respectively. In the subgroup of 35 cirrhotic patients (pretreatment liver stiffness ≥12.5 kPa), 14 of 18 patients with an SVR and three of 17 nonresponders had a fibrosis score below 12.5 kPa at the last follow-up examination. Multivariable analysis showed that SVR was independently associated with a ≥30% reduction in liver stiffness, both in the overall study group (hazard ratio: 5.77; 95% CI: 2.00-16.62; P = 0.0012) and in cirrhotic patients (hazard ratio: 8.21; 95% CI: 2.15-31.34; P = 0.0021). Robustness analyses using FIB4 values showed similar results.

Conclusion: SVR is significantly associated with improvement in liver stiffness in HIV/HCV-coinfected patients, including those with cirrhosis.