Association between Anti-Hepatitis C Viral Intervention Therapy and Risk of Sjögren's Syndrome: A National Retrospective Analysis

Abstract

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a potential risk factor for Sjögren's syndrome (SS). However, it is unclear whether anti-HCV intervention therapy could decrease SS risk. A retrospective cohort analysis from 1997-2012 comprising 17,166 eligible HCV-infected adults was conducted. By 1:2 propensity score matching, a total of 2123 treated patients and 4246 untreated patients were subjected to analysis. The incidence rates and risks of SS and death were evaluated through to the end of 2012. In a total follow-up of 36,906 person-years, 177 (2.8%) patients developed SS, and 522 (8.2%) died during the study period. The incidence rates of SS for the treated and untreated cohorts were 5.3 vs. 4.7/1000 person-years, and those of death for the treated and untreated cohorts were 10.0 vs. 14.8/1000 person-years. A lower risk of death (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.53-0.87) was present in HCV-infected patients receiving anti-HCV therapy in multivariable Cox regression, and this remained consistent in multivariable stratified analysis. However, there were no relationships between anti-HCV therapy and its therapeutic duration, and SS risk in multivariable Cox regression. In conclusion, anti-HCV intervention therapy was not associated with lower SS risk in HCV-infected patients, but associated with lower death risk.

Keywords: HCV infection; Sjögren’s syndrome; anti-HCV therapy; death.

Figure 1

Flow diagram of the enrollment process.

Figure 2

Multivariate stratified analyses for the association between anti-HCV therapy and study outcomes. Each factor was adjusted for all other factors listed in Supplementary Table S2. SS, Sjögren’s syndrome; aHR, adjusted hazard ratio; CI, confidence interval.