Nutrition
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Vitamin E and C supplementation prevents decrease of eicosapentaenoic acid in mononuclear cells in chronic hepatitis C patients during combination therapy of interferon alpha-2b and ribavirin.
We investigated the effects of vitamin E and C supplementation on the fatty acid composition of mononuclear cells and on the clinical observations in patients who had chronic hepatitis C and received interferon-alpha-2b (IFN-alpha-2b) and ribavirin combination therapy. ⋯ Antioxidant vitamin supplementation during IFN-alpha-2b and ribavirin therapy prevented a decrease in EPA of mononuclear cell phospholipids. If a further decrease in the ratio of arachidonic acid to EPA can be achieved by using oral EPA supplementation, the efficacy of IFN-alpha-2b and ribavirin therapy may be improved.