Adverse Effects Of interferon alfa
Intramuscular or subcutaneous injection of interferon is commonly associated with an influenza-like syndrome, especially during the first week of therapy. High-dose or chronic therapy may be limited by bone marrow suppression, profound fatigue, myal gia, weight loss, rash, cough, increased susceptibility to bacterial infections, psychiatric syndromes including depression, anxiety, psy chosis, mania, agitation and neurocognitive impairment, increased aminotransferase activity, alopecia, hypo- or hyperthyroidism, tinnitus, reversible hearing loss, auto-antibody formation, retinopathy, pneumonitis and possibly cardiotoxicity. Injection-site reactions and dose-related neutropenia and thrombocytopenia have been more common with pegylated interferon. Autoimmune chronic hepatitis and other autoimmune diseases like thyroiditis may be induced or exacerbated by treatment with interferon.