To study the frequency of various side effects of alpha interferon therapy during treatment of hepatitis C in DHQ Hospital Gujranawala

Aim: to see the frequency of various side effects of alpha interferon therapy of hepatitis c patients. methods: this prospective observational study was conducted in medical unit dhq hospital,gujranawala medical college. a total of 200 patients of chronic hepatitis c with positive anti hcv (hepatitis c virus) antibodies and hcv rna by polymerase chain reaction (pcr) were enrolled in the study,who presented in opd from dec 2013 to june 2014. result: out of 200 patients 82 were males and 118 were females. 107(53.5%) patients presented with various flu like symptoms like body aches,headache,fever and fatigue. 34(17%) patients presented either with bruises or petechiea or sore throat. on peripheral blood examination there was either neutropenia or thrombocytopenia. 24(12%) presented with depressive symptoms,2(1%) patient presented with deranged renal function test 9(4.5%) presented with deranged thyroid function tests. 12(6%) patients presented with various gastro intestinal complaints like fullness,nausea,anorexia etc 11(5.5%) presented with various dermatological side effects. conclusion: side effects during interferon therapy are very common. early detection and then management of the side effects lead to better success rate of treatment and a good survival.