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Effect of Interferon-α on cognitive functioning in patients with chronic hepatitis C

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 January 2005

ROBIN C. HILSABECK ,
TAREK I. HASSANEIN ,
ELIZABETH A. ZIEGLER ,
MEGHAN D. CARLSON  and
WILLIAM PERRY
ROBIN C. HILSABECK
Affiliation:
Department of Neuropsychiatry & Behavioral Science, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, Texas Department of Medicine, Division of Hepatology, University of California San Diego Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego
TAREK I. HASSANEIN
Affiliation:
Department of Medicine, Division of Hepatology, University of California San Diego
ELIZABETH A. ZIEGLER
Affiliation:
Department of Medicine, Division of Hepatology, University of California San Diego
MEGHAN D. CARLSON
Affiliation:
Department of Medicine, Division of Hepatology, University of California San Diego
WILLIAM PERRY
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego
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Abstract

Treatment with interferon-alpha (IFN-α) has been shown to adversely affect cognitive functioning in patients with a variety of medical disorders, but information about the effects of IFN-α on cognitive functioning in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is limited. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of IFN-α on neuropsychological test performance in CHC patients. Participants were 30 patients with CHC, 11 who underwent IFN-α therapy and 19 who did not. All participants were tested at baseline (i.e., pretreatment) and approximately 6 months later with the Symbol Digit Modalities Test and Trail Making Test. Results revealed that the treatment group performed significantly worse than untreated CHC patients on Part B of the Trail Making Test after approximately 6 months of treatment. No significant group differences were found on Part A of the Trail Making Test or Symbol Digit Modalities Test. Findings suggest that CHC patients undergoing treatment with IFN-α may experience reduced abilities to benefit from practice but suffer no decrements in performance after 6 months of treatment. Additional research is needed to replicate these findings and to explore risk factors for susceptibility to IFN-α-induced effects. (JINS, 2005, 11, 16–22.)

Keywords

Neuropsychological impairmentHCVChronic liver disease
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 11 , Issue 1 , January 2005 , pp. 16 - 22
Copyright
© 2005 The International Neuropsychological Society

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