Papers

Peer-reviewed
Oct, 2014

Nursing Support Increases the Efficacy of Interferon Therapy in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C

Acta Med Okayama
  • Shihoko Namba
  • Kayoko Miyake
  • Fusao Ikeda
  • Tomoko Hazama
  • Yu Hitobe
  • Noriko Yamasaki
  • Hidenori Shiraha
  • Akinobu Takaki
  • Kazuhiro Nouso
  • Yoshiaki Iwasaki
  • Kazuhide Yamamoto
  • Display all

Volume
68
Number
5
First page
263
Last page
268
Language
English
Publishing type
Research paper (scientific journal)
Publisher
OKAYAMA UNIV MED SCHOOL

Nursing support might help patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) remain in good mental and physical condition during interferon (IFN) therapy. However, the effects of nursing support have not been studied adequately in this context. This case-control study evaluated the effects of nursing support during IFN therapy. Twenty-four CHC patients who received pegylated IFN and ribavirin were enrolled. Nurses advised patients on the maintenance of their mental and physical condition at weekly visits, based on the results of written questionnaires. An additional 24 patients who received IFN therapy without nursing support and who were matched for age, sex, platelet count, viral serogroup and IFN regimen were selected with propensity score matching as controls. The patients with nursing support during IFN therapy achieved higher sustained virological responses (79%) than those without nursing support (58%). Adherence to the IFN and ribavirin regimens at 24 weeks of therapy were slightly higher in the patients with nursing support than those without it, but these differences were not statistically significant. Adherence to ribavirin after 24 weeks of therapy was significantly higher in those with nursing support than those without it (93% and 66%, p = 0.045). These results suggested that nursing support services could contribute to the virological responses of CHC patients by promoting drug-regimen adherence.

Link information
Web of Science
https://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcAuth=JSTA_CEL&SrcApp=J_Gate_JST&DestLinkType=FullRecord&KeyUT=WOS:000343269300002&DestApp=WOS_CPL
ID information
  • ISSN : 0386-300X
  • Web of Science ID : WOS:000343269300002

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