Anti- oxidant status in patients with chronic Hepatitis C in Rajasthan, India

Background/Aims: Hepatitis C is a global disease and being endemic in India, it is one of the most important causes of chronic liver disease and furthermore, it is related to carcinogenesis. The pathogenesis of the Hepatitis C disease includes both direct virus induced liver damage, immunological liver damage and oxidative stress. Vitamin E and A have important roles in the Anti-oxidant defense system and they reduce oxidative stress. Our aims were to estimate the levels of the Anti-oxidants, vitamin A, vitamin E and vitamin C in the serum of Chronic Hepatitis C (CHC) patients and to compare them with the levels in normal healthy controls. Material and Methods: A retrospective study was performed at the Department of Gastroenterology and Biochemistry at SMS Medical College, Jaipur, India. In 20 patients of CHC, the serum levels of vitamin A, E and C were estimated by spectrophotometry. Twenty healthy controls were also included in the study and the serum levels of these vitamins were measured in them also.Statistical analysis: It was performed by using the Student's t-test and the correlation between the variables was studied by using the Pearson's correlation coefficient test. Results: The serum vitamin A levels were significantly lower in the patients than in the controls (p<0.001) and the serum vitamin E and vitamin C levels were also significantly decreased (p<0.001). Conclusions: The increased oxidative stress in the Chronic Hepatitis C patients is evidenced by decreased serum Vitamin A, E and C levels and so, further studies on the liver levels of these Anti-oxidants and the management of the dietary Anti-oxidants may help in the management of CHC.