Effect of Danazol Therapy in Chronic HCV Patients Associated Thrombocytopenia

Hamed M. Soliman, Nahla E. El-Gammal, Sherif M. Galal. Sameh M. Abdel monem and Talaat F. AlyTropical Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University, EgyptAbstractAim of the work: study the effect of danazol treatment in chronic HCV patients associated thrombocytopenia before and during interferon therapy.Methods: two hundred patients with chronic HCV whose platelets were ≤85x103/ mm3 were divided into 4 groups according to presence or absence of antiplatelets antibodies and patients cannot able to start interferon therapy or were under interferon therapy. Danazol (200 mg tab) was administered for one month using the following schedule: In the 1st two weeks twice daily orally, if no response i.e. the platelets of patients didn’t reach above 85x103/ mm3, the dose was increased in the next two weeks three times daily orally. If there was response i.e. the platelets of patients reached above 85x103/ mm3 in one month duration, Patients continued danazol till the end of interferon therapy. At the end of interferon therapy the responders were followed up for three months.Results: The overall response was 78% the mean of platelets level at start of treatment were (64.13 ± 11.20/ mm3). Upon receiving danazol treatment, platelets in the four studied groups increased steadily over the study period (ranged from 1-13 months) and at the end of treatment were (176.47± 33.35/ mm3). We found that at the end of follow up period which was 3 months the mean of platelets decreased from (176.47 ± 33.35/ mm3) to (118.28 ± 24.17/ mm3)..