Gabrichevsky Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology, Moscow; State Medical Academy, Astrakhan, Russia
The normalization of the antiviral activity of interferon-α (IFN-α) in the process of the treatment of patients with acute viral hepatitis (VH), simultaneously with the results of other clinico-laboratory tests, reflects the positive dynamics of the process. The prolonged preservation of the elevated level of the antiviral activity of IFN-α (up to 6 months and longer) is a prognostically unfavorable sign. In patients with chronic VH the growth of both the average concentration of IFN-α in the blood serum and its average antiviral activity can be observed. With the progress of the disease and the formation of the cirrhosis of the liver, the concentration of IFN-α in the blood serum remains to be elevated, while its antiviral activity drops.
Zh. Mikrobiol. (Moscow), 2004, No. 1, P. 59—62