Abstract: Objective To compare the efficacy and safety of pegylated interferon-α2a（PEG-INF α-2a） or INF α-2a combined with ribavirin in treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C（CHC）. Methods 30 patients with CHC were treated with PEG-INF α-2a and 30 with INF α-2a,and all were combined with ribavirin;The efficacy of each treatment was observed at 4,12 and 48 weeks. The rate of sustained virologic response （SVR） and the adverse reactions were evaluated 24 weeks after treatment termination. Results The SVR in PEG-INF α-2a group was 90.0%,significantly higher than that in INF α-2a group（56.7%,P<0.01）;Adverse reaction such as fever,muscular soreness,hair loss and decline in neutrophils and platelet counts were observed in both groups, but the incidences of fever and muscular soreness in PEG-INF α-2a treated patients were 36.7% and 33.3%, respectively,which were significantly lower than that in INF α-2a treated patients（P<0.05）;The rate of decline of neutrophils in PEG-INFα-2a treated patients,from 4 to 24 weeks,was more obvious than that in INF α-2a group. Conclusion PEG-INFα-2a plus ribavirin shows better efficacy for CHC without a significant increase in adverse reactions.

Key words: Chronic hepatitis C, Pegylated interferon α, -2b, Ribavirin, Therapeutic effect