[Therapy of chronic viral hepatitis with recombinant interferon-alpha].

Long term treatment with interferon alpha is the only established therapy for chronic viral hepatitis so far. Depending on the type of viral hepatitis the response rate to interferon alpha is between 15 and 40%. These results can be improved by an appropriate selection of patients and possibly by combination therapy with other immunomodulatory and antiviral substances. The optimal dose in chronic hepatitis B is 5 Mega Units (MU) interferon alpha every other day for 6 months and in hepatitis C 3 MU every other day over 6 months.