Fibrosis Regression Explains Differences in Outcome in HIV-/HCV-Coinfected Patients with Cirrhosis After Sustained Virological Response

Fibrosis regression (FR) after sustained virological response (SVR) should produce a better outcome in hepatitis C (HCV)-/HIV-coinfected patients with liver cirrhosis, but there are no specific data in this issue. We compared the incidence rate (IR) and the time to develop a liver complication and death in 133 cirrhotic patients according to SVR or/and FR. Of 42 patients with SVR, 23 (55 %) had FR, in comparison with only 14 of the 91 (15 %) without SVR. During a follow-up of 6.8 years (916.8 person-years), the IR of death, liver-related death, and liver-related complications were 2.45, 0.61, and 1.22 per 100 persons/year among SVR/FR, and 7.6, 5.9, and 6.81 among non-SVR without FR (p < 0.01), respectively. SVR patients without FR had also a lower rate of liver-related complications (1.78 vs 3.25; p = 0.02), but a worse IR of death (5.36) and liver-related death (2.68) than non-SVR patients with FR (1.3, and 0.65; p < 0.01). Moreover, FR was associated with less hospital admissions and decreasing alpha-fetoprotein levels. In Cox analysis, only FR was associated with a lower risk of death (adjusted hazard ratio, HR 0.36; 95 % CI 0.15-0.86), and liver-related death (HR 0.15; 95 % CI 0.03-0.65), whereas both FR (HR 0.09; 95 % CI 0.03-0.3, p < 0.01) and SVR (HR 0.24; 95 % CI 0.07-0.87) decreased the risk of liver-related complications. Fibrosis regression after SVR is associated with the highest reduction in death of any cause, liver-related mortality, and liver-related complications in HIV-/HCV-coinfected patients with cirrhosis.